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A HISTORY 


HAUNTED CAVERNS OF MAGDELAMA, 

AN INDIAN QUEEN OF SOUTH AMERICA, 

WITH HER LIKENESS. 

WRITTEN BY DR. JAMES JOHNSTON. 


DURING a captivity of three years, being taken up as a 
spy by the above queen, and near the expiration of 
his time, tried by their laws for attempting hts es- 
cape, FOUND GUILTY, AND SENTENCED TO DEATH IN THEIR 
BARBAROUS WAY, TO BE STUCK FULL OF LIGHT WOOD SPLIN- 
TERS, SET ON FIRE, AND KEPT DYING FOR SEVERAL DAYS. 
WITH THE AUTHOR’S TRIAL, AND LAST SPEECH TO THE IN- 
DIAN KINGS AND CHIEFS, TOGETHER WITH HIS ORATION ON 
THE STAGE, AT THE KING’S REQUEST, IN ORDER TO TEACH 
THEM THE BETTER TO GOVERN THEIR COUNTRY, AND NUME- 
KOUS SUBJECTS. WITH THE RISE AND PROGRESS OF THE IN- 
DIAN TRIBES, AND THAT OF THE WHITE INHABITANTS OF 
SOUTH AMERICA. 


Published for the relief of the Author, who lost his all 
by that tremendous fire at Savannah, as before stated in 
the public papers. 



V_/ 


PHILADELPHIA: 

PRINTED FOR JAMES SHARON. 
MDCCCXXI. 

Price 87 1-2 cents. 


TZ3 

. cT 644-4- 

V 

5 


EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA, to wit: 

BE IT REMEMBERED, that 011 the 1st day of March- 
in the forty-fifth year of the Independence of the United 
States of America, A. D. 1821, James Sharon, of the said 
district, hath deposited in this office the title of a book, the 
right whereof lie claims as proprietor in the words following, 
to wit: 

“ A History of the Haunted Caverns of Magdelama, an Indian Queen 
of South America, with her Likeness ■ Written by Dr James Johnston , 
during a captivity of three years, being taken up as a spy by the above 
Queen, and near the expiration of his time, tried by their laivs for at- 
tempting his escape, found guilty, and sentenced to death in their bar- 
barous ivay, to be stuck full of light wood splinters, set cn fire, and kept 
dying for several days. With the Author's trial, and'last speech to the 
Indian kings and chiefs, together with his Oration on the stage, at the 
King's request, in order to teach them the better to govern their country , 
and numerous subjects. With the Rise and Progress of the Indian 
tribes, and that of the ichite inhabitants of South America. Publish- 
ed for the relief of the Author, who lost his all by that tremendous fire 
at Savannah, as before stated in the public papers." 

In conformity to the Act of the Congress of the United States 
entitled, “ An act for the encouragement of learning, by se- 
curing the copies of maps, charts, and books to the authors 
aud proprietors of such copies during the times therein men- 
tioned.” And also to the act, entitled, “ An act supplemen- 
tary to an act entitled “ An act for the encoifragement of 
learning, by securing the copies of maps, charts, and books, to 
the authors and proprietors of such copies during the times 
therein mentioned, and extending the benefits thereof to the 
arts of designing, engraving, and etching historical and other 
prints. 

DAVID CALDWELL, 

Clerk of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 


A HISTORY, 8ic. 



The following remarkable circumstance, is from 
my own experience, in company of a Mr. Wm. Smith, 
who had formerly been a great traveller both by 
land and sea; and previous to the above, had tra- 
velled America pretty near to the extent of her 
almost unlimited boundaries, in every direction. 
This very accommodating gentleman, I employed 
to accompany me as a guide as well as a protector, 
throughout our numerous travels in the unfrequent- 
ed wiles of America, the proceeding curious oc- 
currence took place in the united provinces of South 
America, being then lost and bewildered for fifty- 
six days, during which time we never eat a morsel 
of food but the wild trash of the forests, such as 
leaves of trees, and the bark of the same. As we 
were travelling one evening in the sweet pleasant 
month of May, in the dominions of Brazil, which 
commanded a beautiful view of the Atlantic ocean, 
I being some distance in our march a-head of my 
companion Mr. Smith, I was very much surprised 
by beholding at a distance the appearance of a wo- 
man, attended with a train of young maids, who 


4 


all with pensive steps walked subserviently behind 
her, who appeared a much larger woman than those 
of her maids. The nigher this woman approached 
me, the more beautiful she appeared in my sight; 
I being then young, and destitute of that fortitude 
which is necessary to surmount the numerous diffi- 
culties into which youth are too frequently involved. 
It happened to be the case that this woman was as 
much, or perhaps more enamoured with my first 
appearance, than I was with hers. She being pro- 
prietor of a beautiful position not far distant from 
where we met her, entitled The Haunted Caverns 
of Magdelama, a curious and splendid residence; 
she being anxious and full of intrigue, at once seem- 
ed predetermined to compel me to her fond em- 
braces, and in order to effect her design, made use 
of the following expression. O you bold intruders, 
said she, have you not heard of me, my name is 
Magdelama, the governess of these solitary moun- 
tains, from whom no bold invader goes unpunished. 

I being somewhat alarmed at these expressions by 
way of threatenings, I naturally concluded that this 
surprising woman, as I took her to be, could cer- 
tainly raise at a little times warning, perhaps a force 
of several men of the different tribes of Indians, in 
order to revenge her fury upon those on whom she 
wished to inflict some severe punishment. And as 
my guide, Mr. Smith was an old experienced man, 
and with me for the purpose of dictating in all mat- 
ters of importance, I thought it a piece of prudence 
in such a case to have his counsel, who told me to 
make np exertions against her, but act with mildness. 


5 


and to endeavour to captivate her ferocious nature 
with kindness, and endearing speeches. Smith saw 
well the power this beautiful woman possessed, and 
the influence her appearance had on the other sex. 
Though of one of the Indian tribes herself, who are 
generally of a redish brown colour, she was almost 
white; tall, majestic, and as handsome as a limner 
could have drawn her. They are a people, said Smith 
to m self, who are much delighted with their own 
praise, and as I know your talents are equal to ex- 
press something of a pleasing nature to the fair sex, 
commence with some flowery but sensible speeches 
in favour of this woman, and her present indepen- 
dent and noble situation in life, this conduct may be 
the means at length of this woman making us inde- 
pendent for ever, either by mines of gold, silver, or 
lands. I then commenced as follows: — O thou most 
beautious part of the fair creation, as a virtuous fair 
one, you my charmer have captivated my innocent 
heart, and though I am so much in your power, I 
trust you possess too noble a mind to take any ad- 
vantage of our forlorn, bewildered, and unfortunate 
situation. It is true the beautiful, as well as the 
virtuous women, is compared to the most brilliant 
stars of the firmament of heaven, and the influence 
of your power I perceive it is in vain to resist. The 
whiteness of your bosom transcendeth the lily, your 
smiles are far more delicious than a garden of roses, 
the kisses of your lips are sweeter than honey, and 
the perfumes wafted from fields of Arabian spices, 
issueth from thy interior system. Let not the great- 
est nobleman shut his bosom to the tenderness of 
a 2 


6 


your love; for the purity of its flame shall enoble 
even the heart of an emperor, and soften it to re- 
ceive the fairest impressions. Those few expres- 
sions in favour of this woman, very much changed 
the scene. She was immediately softened from the 
hardness of a flint rock, to that of a rose in the 
morning of its first bloom. 

After I had expressed these few sentences, she 
m de a motion for me to follow her; accordingly I 
followed this wonderful woman, who was accom- 
panied by twenty-six young Indian women, almost 
as white and as beautiful as any of the fair sex in 
Europe. She signified that she pitied us very much, 
on account of our bewildered and lost situation, but 
come with me said she, to an asylum for that pur- 
pose, for it is now time that you should repair that 
strength by rest, which has been exhausted by la- 
bour and fatigue, travelling to such a disadvantage 
through those dreary mansions of America. I will 
receive you to my dwelling as my son; you shall be 
my comfort in this solitude; and if you are not vo- 
luntarily wretched, I will be your greatest friend 
through life’s pilgrimage. I followed her, accompa- 
nied by these waiting maids, among whom she was 
distinguished by the superiority of her stature, as 
the towering summit of a lofty oak is seen in the 
midst of a forest, above all the trees that surround 
it. I was struck with the splendour of her beauty, 
the rich beauty of her long and flowing robe, her 
hair that was tied with graceful negligence behind 
her, and the vivacity and softness that were mingled 
in her eyes. Mr. Smith, my guide, followed after 


7 

at a distance: when we arrived at the entrance of 
her cave, I was surprised to discover under the ap- 
pearance of rural simplicity, whatever could capti- 
vate the sight: there was indeed neither gold nor 
silver, nor marble; no decorated columns, no paint- 
ings, no statues were to be seen; but the grotto con- 
sisted of several vaults cut in a rock; the roof was 
embellished with shells and pebbles, and the want 
of tapestry was supplied by the luxuriance of a young 
vine, which extended its branches equally on every 
side. Here the heat of the sun was tempered by 
the freshness of the breeze; the rivulets that, with 
soothing murmurs, wandered through meadow ; s of 
intermingled violets, and which formed innumera- 
ble baths that were pure and transparent as crystal. 
The verdant carpet which nature had spread round 
the grotto, or caVe, was adorned with a thousand 
flowers; and, at a small distance, there was a wood 
of those trees that in every season of the year un- 
folds new blossoms, which diffuses ambrosial fra- 
grance, and ripens into the most beautiful gold 
coloured fruit. In this wood, which was impervious 
to the rays of the sun, and heightened the beauty 
of the adjacent meadows by an agreeable opposition 
of light and shade; nothing was so pleasing to be 
heard as the melody of birds, or the fall of waters, 
which precipitating from the summit of a rock, was 
dashed into foam below; where, forming a small 
rivulet, it glided hastily over the meadows. 

The cave of this admirable woman was situated 
on the declivity of a hiT, and commanded a favour- 
able prospect of the sea, sometimes smooth, peace- 


8 


ful, and limpid; at other times swelling into moun- 
tains, and breaking with idle rage against the shore. 
At another view a river was discovered, in which 
were many islands, surrounded with limes that were 
covered with flowers, and poplars that raised their 
haughty heads to the clouds: the streams which 
formed those islands seemed to stray through the 
fields with a kind of sportful wantonness; some roll- 
ed along in translucent waves with a tumultuous 
rapidity; some glided away in silence with a motion 
that was scarce perceptible; whilst others, after a 
long circuit, turned back, as if they wished to issue 
again from their source, and seemed unwilling to 
quit the paradise through which they flowed. The 
distant hills and mountains hid their summits in the 
blue vapours that hovered over them, and diversified 
the horizon with figures that were equally pleasing 
and romantic. The mountains that were less remote, 
were covered with vines, the branches of which 
were interwoven with each other, and hung down 
in festoons; the grapes, which surpassed in lustre 
the richest purple, were too exuberant to be con- 
cealed by the foliage, and the branches bowed under 
the weight of the fruit. The fig, the olive, the 
pomegranate, and other trees without number, over- 
spread the plains; so that the whole country had the 
appearance of a garden of infinite variety and bound- 
less extent. After this woman had displayed to me 
this profuson of beauty, she dismissed me: “ Go 
now,” said she, “ refresh yourself, and change your 
apparel, which must be still wet from the rain 
through which you travelled, and I will afterwards 


9 


see you again, and relate such things as shall not 
amuse your ear only, but affect your heart also,” 
She then caused me to enter, with my friend Smith, 
into the most secret recess of a cavern adjoining to 
her own: her young maids had already kindled up 
a fire with some billets of cedar, the better to ac- 
commodate us, her new guests. I then looked round 
this solitary mansion, and perceiving a tunis of the 
finest wool, whiter than snow, and a purple robe 
richly embroidered with gold, was, I supposed, in- 
tended for me. I contemplated the magnificence of 
my dress, with that pleasure to which young minds 
are easily betrayed. My worthy old companion, Mr. 
Smith perceived my weakness, and as a father re- 
proved it: Are these then, said he, such thoughts 
as become such a blooming youth as you, who are 
now in the way of making an independent fortune, 
if you but possess sufficient fortitude to guard 
against the bewitching charms of the fair sex, blush 
said he at the thought of effeminacy, nor suffer the 
unvirtuous fair one to tempt you to excess in her 
delights, the madness of desire, shall dilate its own 
pursuits; from the blindness of rage you will rush 
upon destruction. But be mindful of my instruc- 
tions, at least throughout this dangerous scene in 
which w r e are placed; for these are a particular tribe 
of Indians you see, almost as white and as beauti- 
ful as any people in the world; and I have oft times 
heard that they possess a magic art or witchcraft, 
therefore we may consider ourselves in confinement, 
nor dare we attempt to make our escape, least this 
woman, and those at her command, should put us 


10 


to some excruciating death, as they oft times do 
many of their own tribes, for the least offence. There 
is nothing but mildness and good nature, interspersed 
with a little flattery, will answer in our present 
situation. 

Men, who like an unvirtuous woman, loves to 
adorn their person, has renounced all claim to wis- 
dom and glory: for it is due to those only who dare 
to associate with pain, and have trampled pleasure 
under their feet. I then answered Smith with a sigh: 
no sir said I, I hope that I have been created for a 
more noble purpose than to suffer myself to be en- 
slaved by voluptuous effeminacy; nor shall I ever 
be seduced by the charms of enervating and inglo- 
rious ease; but how fortunate we have been, lost 
and forlorn, to fall into the hands of this woman, 
who is daily loading us with benefits. “ Fear rather,” 
replied Smith, “ least her friendship should over- 
whelm you with ruin; fear her deceitful blandish- 
ments more than the distresses of our bewildered 
and lost situation, for even death is less dangerous 
than those pleasures by which virtue is subverted. 
Believe not the tales which she shall relate; the pre- 
sumption of youth hopes all things from itself, and 
however impotent, believes it has power over every 
event; it dreams of security in the midst of danger, 
and listens to subtility without suspicion. Beware of 
the seducing eloquence of this woman; that mischief 
which, like a serpent, is concealed by the flowers 
under which it approaches; dread the latent poison: 
trust not yourself, but confide implicitly in my coun- 
sel, As I am under the determination of befriend- 


11 


ing you throughout these trying moments, as well 
as all other difficulties, during our continuance to- 
gether.” Then we returned to this woman, Magde- 
lama by name, who had been some time waiting for 
us; and her maids who were dressed in white, and 
had their hair braided, set before us a supper; which, 
though it was simple, and consisted only of such 
game as they had either taken with their nets, or 
killed in the chace, was yet of exquisite taste, and 
served up with the utmost elegance: wine more rich- 
ly flavoured than nectar, was poured from large 
silver tankards, and sparkled in cups of gold that 
were wreathed with flowers; and baskets were heap- 
ed with all the variety of fruit that is promised by 
spring and bestowed by autumn. In the mean time 
four of the attendant maids began to sing, agreeable 
to their custom, some beautiful songs as a token of 
respect, as well as an accommodation for us their 
new guests. The songs were numerous, many of 
which were in memory of their Indian kings and 
chiefs, warriors that have been killed in battle by 
their enemies at war; the next was a song with a 
most enchanting and beautiful air, which from its 
melody, and beautiful sound which those numerous 
caverns gave it, my weak and innocent mind was 
affected, which extorted a tear from my languish- 
ing eyes, as it was a tune which my father in his 
lifetime had oft times sung to a favourite song, in 
order to please myself when a small boy. 

As is customary among this tribe of Indians, when 
thinking of the conquests they have made over their 
enemies in battle, they raise their songs to a great 


12 


pitch, and extolled with all the hyperbole of praise. 
The principal of those young waiting maids, whose 
name was Phillima, to the harmonious voices of the 
chorus, joined the music lyre. I at that confused 
period, conceited among the numerous expressions 
in their songs, that I heard some of them mention 
the name of my father; the tears then which stole 
down my cheeks said Smith, added fresh lustre to 
my appearance: but Magdelama, perceiving that I 
was too sensibly touched, and neglected to eat, made 
a sign to her maids, and they immediately changed 
their song to something else. When supper was 
over Magdelama took me aside, and addressed me 
thus: “ You see O stranger, with what favour I 
have received you: know you not that I possess an 
art, superior to any of the; tribes of those southern 
regions, and it is in my power to destroy you and 
your companion in the twinkling of an eye; no hu- 
man foot profanes this solitary mansion unpunished; 
nor would even your misfortunes have averted my 
indignation from you, if my heart was not touched 
with more than your misfortunes. My superior 
knowledge said Magdelama, dictates to me that vou 
are under the resolute determination of making your 
elopement from my territories the first opportunity 
that offers, but be assured that you will hereafter 
repent it; for even the vessel that you should em- 
bark on board of, shall long be the sport of storm, 
and the tempestuous waves of the ocean, and at last 
perhaps, swallowed up in the deep. Let this fore- 
knowledge, said she, influence your future conduct, 
as all hopes of ever again seeing your native coun- 


1*3 


try, and of succeeding to your father’s possessions, 
are now at an end: but do not too much regret this 
loss, since you have found in me so great an advan- 
tage, namely, a wife, mother and protector, who 
offers you superior possessions, and more perma- 
nent felicity.” After this declaration, she exerted 
all her eloquence to display the happiness she con- 
ferred upon me. I had too hastily congratulated 
myself upon the beauty of this woman, but per- 
ceived the mischief of her designs, and the wisdom 
of the counsel which had been given me some time 
previous by Mr. Smith. 

I therefore answered in a few words, u Forgive 
me, O thou beauteous fair one, for involuntary sor- 
row; my heart is now only susceptible of regret, 
but I may be again capable of felicity. Suffer me 
now to pay at least a few tears to the memory of 
my deceased father, who was once my greatest friend 
in life, and admired me far more than jewels of in- 
estimable value.” Magdelama, perceiving that it was 
not at this time her interest to press me further, 
but feigned to participate my sorrow, and to regret 
with me the death of my affectionate father, toge- 
ther with our present lost and bewildered condition. 
That she might gain a mor^ perfect knowledge of 
the means by which my affections were to be en- 
gaged, she inquired of me what part of the globe 
we had most travelled, and what fortunate wind had 
wafted us into her fond embraces. A detail of my 
misfortunes, madam said I, will be too long, and I 
fear weary your patience. However long said she, 
I am impatient to hear it, indulge me therefore with- 

B 


14 


out delay.” I as often refused, but she continued 
her solicitations, and at length I complied. Our 
first set out was from Philadelphia, in a vessel 
which I chartered destined for the city of St. Au- 
gustine, the metropolis of East Florida; during our 
voyage, which was but twenty-six days, we experi- 
enced some hard times; was dismasted, lost two of 
our best seamen, and drove by the violence of the 
storm on a sand bank, where we was obliged to re- 
main for twelve days, until a spring tide took us off 
the bank, and a fair wind fortunately wafted us into 
a port to get repaired. After which we with cheer- 
fulness proceeded on our voyage, and experienced 
no remarkable occurrence until the twentieth day of 
our being out, when one of our sailors perceiving 
from the mast-head a very small cloud, not larger 
from appearance than the size of a man’s hat, but 
seemed to increase fast; all hands were immediate- 
ly called to prepare for the impending danger, in 
which we were most likely in a short time to be 
encircled; and it was too soon the case, for in less 
than half an hour from the first appearance of the 
storm, it got so dark that the hands could scarcely 
see to work the ship; the wind freshened up from 
the north-west, and blew a hurricane indeed. 

The damage we sustained by this violent storm, 
was the loss of our first mate, main and fore mast, 
and most of our rigging. But being all pretty full 
of good spirits, both natural and artificial, we rigged 
up the old hark with her one mast, and got into our 
destined port without any more difficulty, where we 
were kindly received by the Spanish citizens of the 


city of St. Augustine, which is situated on the sea 
coast, in latitude 29° 45': it is of an oblong figure, 
and intersected by four streets, which cut each at 
right angles. This city is strongly fortified. After 
we had made the necessary discoveries here, we 
proceeded on to South America; and during our 
pilgrimage, which was fifty-six days, destitute of 
every comfort, and without victuals, except the wild 
trash of the forests; nor have we for during that 
time beheld the sight of a single person, until we 
now have the pleasure of beholding your sweet self 
madam. This woman was much enamoured with 
the small detail of my travels which I related, but 
insisted that I should give her a small detail of my 
parentage. I have been informed, said I, that pre- 
vious to my father’s going abroad, he placed me 
upon his knees, threw his arms about me, and after 
he had kissed me with the utmost tenderness, pro- 
nounced these words, though I could not then, being 
but a child, understand their meaning: O my son 
may I perish before I see you again; or, may that 
mighty one cut the thread of your tender life while 
it is yet short, as the reaper cuts down a tender 
flower that is but beginning to blow, if you are one 
day to be corrupted and seduced from virtue! O my 
friends, I leave with you this son, whom I so ten- 
derly love; watch over his infancy; if you have an$f 
love for me, keep flattery far from him; and while 
he is yet flexible, like a young plant, keep him up- 
right. But above all, let nothing be forgotten that 
may render him just, benevolent, sincere and sacred. 
He that is capable of a lie, deserves not the name 


16 


of a man; and he that knows not how to be silent; 
is unworthy the dignity of a nobleman. 

Magdelama, after being much gratified at my 
relation of the speech which my father made for 
my future happiness, permitted me a little while to 
go out of the cave to the top of it, in order to be 
benefitted by the fresh breeze. The prospect I be- 
held from this eminence was delightful; the evening 
was now perfectly serene, a few light clouds alone 
floated in the sky, their lucid skirts tinged with 
purple rays from the declining sun; the trees wore 
a brighter green, and the dew-drops that had height- 
ened their verdure, yet glittered on their sprays; 
across a distant valley was extended a beautiful 
rainbow, the sacred record of heaven’s covenant 
with man. As the weather previous to this was 
gloomy, all nature then appeared revived and ani- 
mated; the birds now warbled their closing lays, 
and the bleating of the cattle was heard from the 
neighbouring hills: O how lovely, how' sweet is the 
dewy landscape, exclaimed I, with that delight which 
scenes of calm and vernal nature never fail of raising 
in minds of tenderness, which mine have ever been 
from my earliest childhood, even to the present 
period. After I returned to the cavern, where Mag- 
delama was impatiently waiting to see me, she 
pressed upon me again to relate some more of my 
adventures, which are too tedious to mention here, 
as there is something more interesting to substitute in 
their place. After having once more related another 
part of my travels to her, whilst she sat motionless 
with the greatest of attention; and much admired 


It 


at my memory, and appeared to possess an inexpres- 
sible delight, now interrupted me, that I enjoy some 
respite. “ It is time,” said she, that after so many 
toils you should taste the sweets of repose, in this 
possession of mine you have nothing to fear; every 
thing is here subservient to your wishes; open your 
heart therefore to joy, and make room for all the 
blessings of peace, which I am preparing for you: 
and to-morrow, when the rosy finger of aurora shall 
unlock the golden doors of the east, and the steeds 
of Phoebus shall spring up from the deep, diffusing 
the beams of day, and driving before them the stars 
of heaven, you will I hope resume the history of 
your travels. May one deep and unbroken slumber 
render this “night short to you; though to me alas! 
it will be wearisome and long. With what impa- 
tience shall I desire again to see you, and to hear 
your voice; and urge you to repeat what I have been 
told already; and inquire after what I am still to 
learn: go then my beloved stranger, said she, with 
your friend Smith, and retire into the cavern which 
is already prepared for your repose, and may Mor- 
pheus shed his benignest influence upon your eye- 
lids, that are now heavy with fatigue, and bewilder- 
ed with night walking; and diffuse a pleasing languor 
over your delightful heart, and sport around you; 
fill your imagination with glad ideas, and keep far 
from you whatever might chase them away too 
soon.” She then conducted us unto the separate 
grotto, which was not less pleasant and rural than 
her own. In one part of it, the lulling murmurs of 
a fountain invited sleep to the weary; and in an* 
b 2 


18 


* 4 ■ ^ if. 

v * ' 

' % S> l 

jdthery the young maids had prepared two beds of 
the softest moss, and covered them with two large 
' skins; one with that of a lion, for myself, and the 
other with that of a dragon, for my friend Smith, 
We were now in separate beds, but in the same 
apartment. Before Smith resigned his eyes to sleep, 
he spoke to me thus: “ The pleasures of so often 
relating your adventures, has I am afraid insnared 
you; for by displaying the dangers which you have 
surmounted by your courage and ingenuity, you 
have captivated this woman; and in proportion as 
you have inflamed her passion, you have I fear in- 
sured your own captivity. I fear she will not suffer 
us to depart from her enchanting residence, after 
you having displayed such power to please her; in 
order still to keep Magdelama in a good humour, 
proceed to-morrow morning in your account of the 
most interesting circumstances which have taken 
place during your numerous travels through life.” 
This salutary advice was received by me with the 
same friendship with which it was given by Smith, 
and we immediately lay down to rest. During the 
night, about the hour of twelve, I was much alarm- 
ed by the weight of a cold hand laid on my fore- 
head; being in the midst of my silent slumbers, I 
immediately started up out of bed, being half asleep, 
I ran through those extensive caverns, and got lost, 
whilst Smith was still fast asleep; I wandered for 
some time through those dreary regions, till finding 
I could not make my way back to my own apart' 
ment, concluded to lay myself down to rest. 


19 


I had not yet closed my eyes, when again sur- 
prised by the shrill and beautiful voice of Magde- 
lama, who came with lighted torches, encircled with 
a numerous crowd of her young maids, who made 
the greatest of friendship towards me, and seemed 
to rejoice very much at their good fortune, in getting 
to me before I was devoured by the voracious ani- 
mals of prey, which so often frequented those ex- 
tensive caverns. Rise up, she says, my dear stran- 
ger, and come along with me, and I will be your 
protection through these my pleasant possessions the 
remnant of the night. She took hold of my arm and 
brought me to her own apartment; and as I was 
without clothes, just as I jumped out of bed, she 
soon had me dressed in a suit of an Indian king’s 
regimentals, who was killed in the Indian war by 
her brother, who had been chief king over the dif- 
ferent tribes of the southern united provinces in 
America. After she had pressed me to partake of 
a few glasses of wine, in order to animate my spi- 
rits, the better to undergo an approaching scene to 
which she contemplated to take me, and therefore 
invited me to walk with her in company with twenty- 
eight young maids her attendants, in order she said 
to show me a curiosity. We then took our depar- 
ture, from her dwelling to the place appointed, arm 
and arm; I being dressed in a suit of Indian king’s 
regimentals, embroidered with the finest of gold 
lace, occasioned Magdelama much more delighted 
with my appearance than ever. Now, said she, you 
look just like the man I wish to make of you; for 
my husband was chief king of these tribes?, who was 


20 


killed in a war battle the first year of his reign. We 
proceeded on through the different caverns, in num- 
ber she told me was thirty-six, and their length from 
the entrance was six miles. We arrived at length 
at an Indian town, three miles distance from where 
we started; it being then day-break of a beautiful 
morning; there we beheld two tribes of Indians, 
one at war against the other. Magdelama intro- 
duced me to the chief warrior of her own tribe, a 
near relative of her own; I was then immediately 
taken into his house, in company of Magdelama and 
her attendants, under a strong guard, the better to 
keep us from danger; atthe same time we could plain- 
ly discover, through holes in the house for the pur- 
pose, how the battle went on. There I could be- 
hold the men falling by scores. For during some 
time, the miseries of that day to me seemed most 
alarming; as quick as one of those Indians fell by 
a stroke of the enemy, several of them immediately 
jumped upon him, out knife, and off with his scalp; 
and many scalps were taken off, when the Indians 
were yet living. A scalp is the skin cut off the top 
©f the head, hair and all, as a token of victory. 

This battle being decided in favour of the tribe to 
which Magdelama was one of the chief females, 
we took our departure back to the cavern which we 
started from. Arriving there, I found my friend 
Smith in a state of deep melancholy, thinking that 
I had perhaps went out on a call of nature, and un- 
fortunately got devoured alive by the howling ani- 
mals of the forests. But a sight of me was fresh life 
to him. After I h1»4 related this singular adventure 


21 


to him, he immediately conceived the reason why 
Magdelama took me to see the Indian battle; which 
was, he said, to try my courage, and know by my 
being terrified or unmoved by the scene of war, 
whether or no she could easily compel me to her 
lascivious desires. Mr. Smith to be sure was a man 
of extensive wisdom and experience, but amidst 
these enchanting delusions in which we were en- 
circled, he began to get much more in dread of our 
dangerous situation than I was myself, as I waa 
getting more callous and hardened to the intrigues 
of the deceitful world, the longer I remained in that 
place of bondage. For my own part I generally pos- 
sess a cheerful mind, which I find to be more than 
half the victory in surmounting the many difficulties 
to which I have been exposed. O! said Smith one 
day during our captivity, what a sweet privilege 
liberty is, it h&s a delightful and pleasing sound; it 
has formerly stimulated the breasts of our fore-fa- 
thers to wade through oceans of blood, feailess of 
death in all her ghastly forms. That is a true ob- 
servation said I, Mr. Smith, but as the councils of 
a commonwealth are generally more public than 
those of a monarchy, so generally they are more 
fair than honest. 

The conviction of being free, makes the people 
easy in a republic, even where they are more bur- 
dened than under an arbitrary monarch. There was 
another curious circumstance occurred shortly after 
the above; being one night about half past eleven 
o’clock most agreeably surprised by the sound of 
music, I being remarkably fond of such from my 


22 


earliest childhood, raised up my head from my pil- 
low the better to hear it; the sound of the music 
increased, which so much charmed and raised my 
imaginations, that I was immediately prompted to 
leap out of bed, and go to where I thought that 
beautiful sound appeared to come from. 

Just as I was getting out of bed, Smith interrupt- 
ed me with the following expression: Why, says he, 
boy are you distracted, or do you mean to rush in 
the midst of destruction at once; this sound of mu- 
sic I heard myself, but did not wish to wake you, 
least you should make such an attempt as you are 
now doing. I can said he, perhaps satisfy you re- 
specting this music at such a late hour of the night. 
I have oft times heard previous to this, that in these 
extensive caverns, there assembles four times a year 
a numerous band of Indian kings, chief warriors 
with their wives and families, in order to rejoice for 
the many victories they have gained in battle over 
their enemies; many of them are skilled in the ma- 
gic arts, and at their dances perform many surpri- 
sing feats, therefore I beg you not to go near them, 
least that in their fury in time of their sham-battles, 
they should put you to instant death. Forgive me, 
said I, Mr. Smith for this freedom, as my curiosity 
is so great, I must gratify it to go and see them. 
And as I am hardened and callous from this state 
of captivity, as well as other diversified scenes 
through life. I think with all their witchcraft, wis- 
dom, and other wretched acquirements, if they are 
greater devils than I have become one myself, they 
are pretty well accomplished indeed. I immedi- 


itely set out for their banquet: Smith took care to 
keep in sight of me, until I arrived at the place of 
merriment, where I with joy inexpressible, beheld 
Magdelama amongst the chief females, dressed up 
ih the greatest style imaginable. Previous to my 
arrival there, she had informed one of the Indian 
queens of my being much taken in love with her 
chief waiting maid, whose name was Phillima, and 
did not pay that attention to her which was neces- 
sary, besides I had attempted lately to make my 
escape. This news too soon spread amongst the 
Indian chiefs, who, for undervaluing Magdelama 
their friend, and also the widow of one of their 
deceased kings, had made a determination of put- 
ting me to the most excruciating death. I was then, 
as soon as apprehended on the ground, seized and 
confined, with my hands tied behind my back; and 
a large fire, as big as a small house, was directly 
made of wood, for the purpose of consuming me. . 

At this shocking sight, Magdelama, moved with 
compassion, fell down on her knees to beg the king’s 
pardon for me, which was granted upon the follow- 
ing conditions: After this fire was kindled, several 
of the Indian chiefs took me to see the preparation 
they had made for my punishment; and when they 
had got me to this fire which was blazing like thun- 
der, most terrifying indeed; besides, there tvas se- 
veral men employed in splitting the fattest of light 
wood very fine, in order to stick my body full of it, 
and then set it on fire, in order as they generally do, 
to keep a man in torture, and as long as possible a 
dying. They stuck one of the splinters of this wood 


24 


into the skin of my back after having stripped oft' 
my clothes, and set it on fire; but as soon as the fire 
came too near my skin, being in a state of frenzy, 
I quickly pulled out the splinter all on fire, and 
throwed it with all the bitterness of my indignation 
amongst the Indians, which set several of their hair 
on fire, and was the occasion of a hearty laugh 
amongst the kings and chief warriors; some of them 
concluded that I disregarded fire, or even the 
thoughts of impending death; no, no, said others, 
he is as much afraid of death as any man; well, 
says others, let us try how he can stand the heat of 
this large fire that is blazing so strong for his pur- 
pose. They took me to the fire and pushed me al- 
most into it, but finding it rather too hot, and being 
in a state of madness, not regarding my life, nor 
did I at that period seem to care for death, in all 
her dreadful and ghasdy forms. As they had un- 
tied my hands some time previous to that, I took 
hold of two fiery sticks of wood, and ran violently 
in amongst the thickest crowd of them and exer- 
cised my best abilities with those fiery billets, which 
made them soon scatter, running and laughing, al- 
most ready to die, and I wished they had, the thieves, 
with the fun they experienced from my rude con- 
duct. Now the Indians are a people that delight in 
noble actions; and funny mad behaviour pleases 
them to the heart. After these few capers, they 
took me to where their women were, and introduced 
me to them; amongst the rest was Magdelama, 
whose countenance seemed much more pleasing to 
me than before; she also came forward to me and 


25 


kindly shook hands. Now said their chief king, 
agreeable to Magdelama’s desire, would you rather 
renounce all other women and have her in marriage, 
than to stand your death like the son of a king, or 
officer, in that flaming fire which you saw built for 
the purpose. If this is the honour said I you con- 
fer upon officers, I would of the two choose to be 
a private soldier; and as to joining in wedlock with 
Magdelama, I rejoice at having that favourable op- 
portunity. After assuring this multitude, as well as 
Magdelama, that there was no other woman on this 
spacious earth I admired but her, the king of that 
tribe told me that I had but one thing more to per- 
form, if I executed that important request agree- 
able to the satisfaction of him and the rest of the 
chiefs present, I should be immediately pronounced 
a free man, both from them and the captivity of 
Magdelama- Smith had secreted himself all this 
time of my persecution, lest he should share the 
same fate which was intended for me. The multi- 
tude being in a state of suspense to hear me per- 
form the king’s request, he stepped to me himself, 
and said, now you are to deliver in presence of this 
assembly a speech, in order to dictate to kings and 
rulers, how wisely to govern their passions, as well 
as their subjects; so mount this stage for the pur- 
pose and proceed. 

The Author's speech to the Indian kings and rulers. 

O you great, mighty kings and rulers, permit me, 
though unworthy as well as incapable, to make an 
expression for your edification as near agreeable to 
c 


26 


the king’s request, as my weak mind is capable of 
dictating me. 

In the first place, a good king makes good sub- 
jects. That king that can govern his own passions, 
is capable of subduing many nations. If the autho- 
rity of a king over his subjects be absolute, the au- 
thority of the law by which he governs, should be 
absolute over him; his power to do good should be 
unlimited, but the same time he ought to be re- 
strained from doing evil. As the law have put the 
people into his hands as the most valuable deposit, 
upon condition that he should treat them as his 
children; for it is the intent of the law, that the 
wisdom and equity of one man shall be the happi- 
ness of many, and not that the wretchedness and 
slavery of many should gratify the luxury and pride 
of one. A king ought to possess nothing more than 
the subject. But in proportion as more is necessary 
to alleviate the fatigue of his station, and impress 
upon the minds of the people a reverence of that 
authority by which the laws are executed. In every 
other respect, a king should indulge himself less, as 
well in ease as in pleasure, and be less disposed to 
the pomp and pride of life than any other man: he 
ought not to be distinguished from the rest of man- 
kind by the greatness of his wealth, or the variety 
of his enjoyments, but by superior wisdom, more 
heroic virtue, and more splendid glory. Abroad, 
noble kings, you should be defending your country 
by commanding your armies, and at home the judge 
of your people; distributing justice among them, 
improving their morals, and increasing their felicity. 


2 7 


It is not for yourselves that the most high has en- 
trusted you with royalty; you are exalted-above in- 
dividuals, only that you may be the servant of the 
public; to the public you owe all your time, the 
public should engage all the king’s attention, And 
his love should have no object but the public, for 
he deserves dignity only in proportion as he gives 
up private enjoyments for the public good. The 
children of a king should not succeed to his throne, 
but upon conditions that they should govern by these 
maxims; he should love his people more than his 
family, and by this wise institution he insures pow- 
er and happiness to his kingdom. This mode of 
government I highly recommend to all kings and 
rulers; thus a peaceful legislator, when dictated by 
a wise king, will in time eclipse the glory of mighty 
conquerors, who too often sacrifice nations to their 
own vanity. The power of such tyrants as these, 
after a few years will be laid in the cold recesses of 
the grave, and their works will follow them. But 
the justice of a wise king, at that great day appoint- 
ed, will place him in a more beautiful situation than 
the former; it will place him at the right hand of 
the throne of the majesty in the heavens, there to 
remain in a state of perfect blessedness, whilst ever- 
lasting ages and worlds roll round. 

The moment I pronounced the last word of the 
above oration, the colors, which during my speech 
was held over my head by an ensign, was swayed 
downwards as a signification of my conclusion, and 
honour to the assembly. Then there was the great- 


28 


est acclamations of gratification among the whole 
assembly, distinguished by shouts, yells, throwing 
up their hats, caps and bonnets, together with dan* 
cing the Indian dance round a large fire, the same 
which they had prepared for me; all joined hands, 
and myself in the midst. This mad frolic being 
over, the chief king, whose name was Pazorro, the 
great emperor of all the tribes in the southern uni- 
ted provinces of America, pronounced me freed 
from death, or any other punishment whatever, 
either by Magdelama, or her commands; and so 
gave me from under his hand a written discharge, 
which I have in my possession till this present pe- 
riod, of which the following is a copy: — 

These are to certify to all persons whom it may 
concern, that the bearer hereof has been regularly 
reprieved from death, for a gross insult and decep* 
tion of Magdelama, governess of the Haunted Ca- 
verns of Granada. And by these presents he is de- 
fended against all persons who might give them- 
selves the trouble of apprehending him for the same. 

We also certify that we are completely convinced 
of his innocence, by many meritorious acts of gene- 
rosity, piety, eloquence, and noble acts, for which 
he is worthy of honour and respect of all among 
whom he may sojourn, or should have the pleasure 
of perusing the within. Given from under our hands 
and seals, this 21st day of April, 1795. 

Testas. 

Lara Futanga, chief king. Leoma Pazorro chief 
king. Theloma Rennorora, king. Magdelama, 
governess of the Caverns. 


A remarkable dream of the author's mother , on the 
very night previous to his trial among the Indians . 

Return, return unhappy spouse, 

Nor seek the fatal place, 

Where thoughtless crowds expecting stand, 

To see your child’s disgrace. 

Methinks I see the judges sit, 

The council all attend, 

My Jemmy trembling at the bar, 

Bereft of every friend. 

How shall a mother’s eye sustain 
The dreadful sight to see, 

Return dear wife the husband cries, 

And leave the task to me. 

f * / 

Persuade me not my faithful love, 

But help me now to go, 

And see my lovely Jemmy’s face, 

And share iu all his wo. 

s 

I’ll kneel before his judges’ feet, 

And prayers and tears employ, 

For pity take my wretched life, 

But spare my darling boy. 

When trembling prostrate in the dust, 

My heart-felt sorrows flow, 

O, sure the hardest heart will melt 
To see a mother’s wo. 

How did I watch his infant years, 

Through fond affection blind. 

And hoped the coinfort of my age, 

In Jemmy’s love to find. 

C 2 


30 


Oft When he joined the youthful train. 

And roved the groves all round, 

Full many a wistful look 1 sent. 

And thought he staid too long. 

And when at length I saw my boy 
Come bounding o’er the plain, 

The sprightliest of all the throng, 

The foremost of the train. 

How had I gazed with fond delight, 

His harmless joy to see, 

When home he brought a bunch of flowers. 
And chose the best for me. 

Why did you go through Indian tribes. 
Where fraud and cunning dwell, 

Alas the heart that knows no guile, 

Should choose the humble cell. 

So might I still with eager joy, 

Expect my child’s return; 

And not as now, his cruel fate, 

In bitter sorrow mourn. 

Last night when all was dark and still, 

0 wonderous tale to tell! 

I dream’d I heard a mournful sound — 

1 thougnt ’twas Jemmy’s bell. 

And oft amidst the dreary gloom, 

I heard a dismal groan, 

I thought I felt a clay cold hand, 

Which fondly press’d my own. 

The sound I heard was much confused, 

Of all the rustic train, 

And Jemmy’s fainting, trembling voice, 
For pity begg’d in vain. 


31 


Methought I saw the fatal fire, 

And saw him dragg’d along, 

I saw him seiz’d — 1 spoke no more, 

For anguish stopp’d my tongue. 

Her faithful partner gently strove 
Her sinking heart to cheer, 

Yet while his lips of comfort spoke. 

He could not hide a tear. 

But now the voice of joy or wo. 

To her alike were vain. 

Her thoughts still dwelt on Jemmy’s fate. 

Her lips on Jemmy’s name. 

Thus on the mournful pair advanced, 

And reach’d the fatal place, 

Where thoughtless crowds were gather’d round, 
To see their child’s disgrace. 

Such crowds as run with idle gaze, 

Alike to every show, 

Nor heed a wretched mother’s tears. 

Nor feel a father’s wo. 

Sudden she stopp’d — for now in view 
The crowded hall appear’d — 

Chill horror seized her stiffen’d frame, 

Her voice no more was heard. 

She could not move, nor could she weep, 

Her hands were clasp’d on high; 

And all her soul in eager gaze, 

Seemed starting from her eye. 

For her the husband trembled now, 

With tender anxious fear; 

O woman turn and speak to me, 

Alas she could not hear. 


/ 


32 

Still fix’d she stood in silent wo, 

Still gazed on the door; 

When lo a murmuring through the crowd, 

Proclaimed the trial o’er. 

At once the blood forsook her cheek, 

Her feeble spirits fled, 

When Jemmy flew into her arms, 

And rais’d her drooping head. 

The well known voice recall’d her soul, 

She clasp’d him to her breast, — 

O joy too vast for words to tell, 

Let fancy paint the rest. 

The author has lately been home to the old countries on family- 
affairs, and during the time that his old mother of near tighty 
jears of age, was telling him her remarkable dream, he was 
penning it down; and had clearly ascertained from the date of 
her dream, that his mother dreamed it the night previous to his 
trial. So that the reader may judge whether or not dreams are 
sent for warnings. 


Manners and customs of the Indians in South Ame- 
rica, and other parts of the Continent . 

The native South American Indians are tall and 
stout in their limbs, beyond the proportions of most 
other nations, particularly in the Creek nation. I 
have seen men of six feet nine inches, and well 
proportioned to the same. Many of them are well 
featured and handsome; and many of the Indian 
women as beautiful almost as drawn pictures. The 


33 


bodies of the men kind are strong, but more fitted 
to endure much hardships, than to continue long at 
any servile work which they cannot support. Their 
bodies and head are flatish, their features are even 
and regular, but their countenance fierce; their hair 
long and black, stout, hearty, but have no beards. 
The colour of their skin is a reddish brown, which 
most of them admire and take proper methods to 
improve. 

The Europeans on their first arrival in America, 
found the Indians quite naked, except those parts 
which is common for the most uncivilized people 
to conceal. Since that time, they have generally 
a coarse blanket to cover them, which they buy from 
their neighbours. The whole tenor of their lives is 
of a piece: They are remarkably hardy and durable; 
cold cannot affect them, being inured to hardships 
from their earliest childhood. When an Indian i6 
first born, he is tied fast to a board about four feet 
long and fourteen inches broad, in order to make 
him straight; and kept on that board until he is two 
months old, and whenever his mother wishes to re- 
move the child from one place to another, she just 
takes hold of the board and draws it along, or 
pitches it child and all carelessly to the spot she 
wishes it. 

Indians in time past, seldom wore any thing but 
what is called a British cloth, just what was suffi- 
cient to secrete those valuable instruments of nature 
from the eye of a curious beholder. When a white 
man will ask an Indian how he can bear the cold so 
well, his answer is, how can your face bear the cold, 


34 


in like manner could your whole body bear it, if 
you never had wore clothes. The mode of life 
the Indians pursue, is hunting and war; for agri- 
culture is left to their women. For at the time of 
their marriage, in token of their due maintainance 
of each other, the Indian presents his new married 
wife with the leg of a Deer, and his wife presents 
him with an ear of Indian corn, signifying that he 
is bound by the ties of matrimony to find their 
family in flesh meat, and she to find them in Indian 
corn for bread, from her industry in the field. Be- 
fore the Europeans discovered them, they knew not 
the use of spirituous liquors; but now, the acquire- 
ment of these is the principal object of their pur- 
suit. 

The Indians are grave, even to sadness, in their 
deportment upon any serious occasion; observant 
of those in company, respectful to the old, and of 
a temper cool and deliberate. They are never in 
haste to speak before they have thought well of the 
matter, and are sure the person who spoke before 
them, has finished all he has to say. They have 
therefore, the greatest contempt for the vivacity of 
the Europeans, who interrupt each other, and fre- 
quently speak all together. In their public coun- 
cils and assemblies, every man speaks in his turn, 
according as his years, his wisdom, or his services 
to his country, have ranked him. Not a word, not 
a whisper, not a murmur is heard from the rest 
while he speaks, no indecent condemnation, no ill- 
timed applause. The younger class attend for their 
instruction, and here they learn the history of their 


35 


nation; here they are inflamed with the songs of 
those who celebrate the warlike actions of their an- 
cestors; and here they are taught what are the inte- 
rests of their country, and how to pursue them. 

Though the American Indian is naturally humane 
and hospitable; yet, to the enemies of his country, 
or to those who have privately offended him, he is 
implacable. He conceals his resentments, he ap- 
pears reconciled, till, by some treachery or surprise, 
he has an opportunity of executing an horrible re- 
venge. No length of time is sufficient to allay his 
resentment, no distance of place great enough to 
protect the object; he crosses the steepest moun- 
tains, he pierces the most impervious forests, and 
traverses the most hideous bogs and deserts for 
some hundreds of miles, bearing the inclemency of 
the seasons, the fatigue of the expedition, the ex- 
tremes of hunger and thirst, with patience and 
cheerfulness, in hopes of surprising his enemy, on 
whom he exercises the most shocking barbarities. 

The Americans have scarce any temples; for, as 
they live by hunting, inhabit mean cottages, and 
are given to change their habitation, they are sel- 
dom very religious. Some appear to have little 
ideas of God; others entertain better notions, and 
hold the existence of the Supreme Being, eternal 
and incorruptible, who has power over all. Satis- 
fied with owning this, which is traditionary among 
them, they pay him no sort of worship. 

The darling passion of the Americans is liberty, 
and that in its fullest extent; to liberty the native 
Indians sacrifice every thing. This is what makes 


36 


a life of uncertainty and want supportable to them, 
and their education is directed in such a manner as 
to cherish this disposition to the utmost. They are 
indulged in all manner of liberty; they are never 
upon any account, chastised with blows, and very 
rarely even chidden. 

Though some tribes are found in America with 
a king at their head, yet his power is rather persua- 
sive than coercive, and he is reverenced as a father, 
more than feared as a monarch. He has no guards, 
no prisons, no officers of justice. In some tribes 
there are a kind of nobility, who, when they come 
to years of discretion, are entitled to a place and 
vote in the councils of the nation. But among the 
five nations, or Iroquois, the most celebrated com- 
monwealth of North America, and in some other 
nations, there is no other qualification absolutely 
necessary for the head men, but age, with ability 
and experience in their affairs. 

Whenever any affair of consequence is to be 
transacted they appoint a feast, of which almost the 
whole nation partakes. There are smaller feasts on 
" matters of less general concern, to which none are 
invited but those who are engaged in that particular 
business. At these feasts it is against all rule to 
leave any thing; so that, if they cannot eat all, what 
’ remains is thrown into the fire. They look upon 
fire as a thing sacred, and in all probability their 
feasts were anciently sacrifices. Before the enter- 
tainment is ready, the principal person begins a 
song, the subject of which is the fabulous or real 
history of their nation, the remarkable events which 


37 


have happened, and whatever matters may conduce 
to their honour or instruction. The others sing in 
their turn, they have dances too, with which they 
accompany their songs, chiefly of a martial kind; 
and no solemnity or public business is carried on 
without such songs and dances. 

The charge of the internal peace and order is 
likewise committed to the same council of the el- 
ders, which regulates whatever regards the exter- 
nal policy of the state. Their suits are few and 
quickly decided, having neither property nor art 
enough to render them perplexed or tedious. 

The loss of any of their people, whether by war 
or a natural death, is lamented by the whole town 
he belongs to. In such circumstances no business 
is taken in hand, however important, nor any re- 
joicings permitted, however interesting the occa- 
sion, until all the pious ceremonies due to the dead 
are performed, which are always discharged with 
the greatest solemnity. The dead body is washed, 
anointed and painted, so as in some measure to 
abate the horrors of death. Then the women la- 
ment the loss vi ith the most bitter cries, and the 
most hideous howlings, intermixed with songs, 
which celebrate the great actions of the deceased, 
and those of his ancestors. The men mourn in a 
less extravagant manner. The whole village at- 
tends the body to the grave, which is then interred, 
habited in the most sumptuous ornament: — With 
the body of the deceased are placed his bow and 
arrows, with what he valued most in his life, and 
D 


38 


provisions for the long journey he is to take. Feast- 
ing attends this, as it does every solemnity. 

No instances of regard to their deceased friends 
are so striking as what they call the feast of the 
dead, or the feast of souls. The day of this cere- 
mony is appointed in the council of their chiefs, 
who give orders for every thing that may enable 
them to celebrate it with pomp and magnificence. 
The neighbouring people are invited to partake of 
the feast, and to be witnesses of the solemnity.— 
At this time, all who have died since the last so- 
lemn feast of that kind, are taken out of their 
graves; those who have been interred at the great- 
est distance from the villages are diligently sought 
after, and brought to this great rendezvous of se- 
pulchral relicts. 

The opening of these tombs displays one of the 
most striking scenes that can be conceived. This 
humiliating portrait of human misery, exhibited in 
so many images of death, wherein a thousand va- 
rious shapes of horror are depicted, according to 
the different ravages that time has made, forms al- 
together a scene too indelicate to be here described. 
I know not which ought to affect us most, the hor- 
ror of so striking a sight, or the tender piety and 
affection of those poor people towards their depart- 
ed friends. 

This strange festival is the most magnificent and 
solemn of any they have, not only on account of 
the great concourse of natives and strangers, and 
of the pompous re-interment they give to the dead, 
whom they dress in the finest skins they can get. 


39 


after having exposed them some time in this pomp, 
but for the games of all kinds which they celebrate 
upon the occasion, in the spirit of those which the 
ancient Geeek& and Homans celebrated upon similar 
occasions. In this manner do they endeavour to 
soothe the calamities of this life, by the honours 
they pay to the dead. Though among these savage 
nations this custom is impressed with strong marks 
of the ferocity of their nature; yet an honour to 
the dead, a tender feeling of their absence, and a 
revival of their memory, are some of the most ex- 
cellent means of softening our rugged nature into 
humanity. 

Though the women in America have generally 
the laborious part of economy upon themselves, 
yet they are far from being the slaves they appear, 
and are not at all subject to the great subordination, 
in which they are placed in countries where they 
seem to be more respected. On the contrary, they 
hold their councils, and have their share in all de- 
liberations that concern the state; nor are they found 
inferior to the part they act. Polygamy is prac- 
tised by some nations, but it is not general. — In 
most places they content themselves with one wife; 
but a divorce is admitted, and for the same causes 
that it was allowed among the Jews, Greeks and 
Romans. No nation of the Americans is without 
a regular marriage, in which there are many cere- 
monies. Incontinent before marriage, after wedlock 
the chastity of their women is remarkable. The 
punishment of the adulteress, as well as that of the 
adulterer, is in the hands of the husband himself, 


40 


and it is often severe, being inflicted by him who is 
at once the party and the judge. Their marriages 
are not fruitful, seldom producing above two or 
three children; and from hence we may derive the 
principal cause of the depopulation of America. 

The manner of their preparing for war and their 
mode of carrying it on, seem peculiar to them- 
selves. Almost the sole occupation of the Ameri- 
can Indian is war or such an exercise as qualifies 
him for it. His whole glory consists in this, and 
no man is at all considered until he has increased 
the strength of his country with a captive, or adorn- 
ed his hat with the scalp of one of his enemies. 
When the Indians resolve upon war, they do not 
always declare what nation it is they are determin- 
ed to attack, that the enemy upon whom they really 
intend to fall, may be off their guard: and they 
sometimes even let whole years pass over without 
committing any act of hostility, that the vigilance 
of all may be unbent by the long continuance of the 
watch, and the uncertainty of the danger. 

In the mean time, they are not idle at home. — 
The principal captain summonses the youths of 
the town to which he belongs, the war kettle is set 
on the fire, the war songs and dances commence, 
the hatchet is sent to the villages and allies of the 
same nation, and the most hideous howlings con- 
tinue, without intermission, day and night, over 
the whole tract of country. The women add their 
cries to those of the men, lamenting those whom 
they have either lost in war or by natural death, 


41 


and demanding their places to be supplied by their 
enemies. „ 

The fury of the nation being thus raised to the 
greatest height, and all longing to imbrue their 
hands in blood, the war captain prepares the feast, 
which consists of dog’s flesh. All that partake of 
this feast receive little billets, which are so many 
engagements they take to be faithful to each other, 
and obedient to their commander. None are forc- 
ed to the war, but, when they have accepted this 
billet, they ar£ looked upon as v enlisted, and it is 
then death to recede. All the warriors in this as- 
sembly have their faces blackened with charcoal, 
intermixed with ashes and streaks of vermillion, 
which give them a most horrid appearance. Their 
hair is dressed up in an odd manner, with feathers 
of various kinds. 

In this assembly, which is preparatory to their 
military expedition, the chief begins the war song, 
which having continued for some time, he raises 
his voice to the highest pitch, and turning off sud- 
denly in a sort of prayer, he addresses himself to 
the God of war, whom they call Areskoni. “ I 
invoke thee, (says he) to be favourable to my enter- 
prize! I invoke thy care to me and my family! I 
invoke ye likewise, all ye spirits and demons good 
and evil! all ye that are in the skies, or on the earth, 
or under the earth, to pour destruction on our ene- 
mies, and to return me and my companions safely 
to my country!” All the warriors join him in his 
prayer with shouts and acclamations. The captain 
renews his song, strikes his club against the stakes 
b 2 


42 


of the cottage, and begins the war dance, accom- 
panied with the shouts of all his companions, which 
continue as long as he dances. 

On the day appointed for their departure they 
take leave of their friends, and change their clothes 
or what moveables they have, in token of friend- 
ship. Their wives and female relations go out be- 
fore them and attend at some distance from the 
town. The warriors march out all dressed in their 
finest apparel and most showy ornaments, regular- 
ly one after another, for they never march in rank. 
Their chief walks slowly on before them, singing 
the death song, while the rest preserve the most 
profound silence. When they come up to the wo- 
men, they deliver to them all their finery, put on 
their worst clothes, and then proceed as their com- 
mander directs. 

The Indians seldom engage in a war upon mo- 
tives common to Europe; they have no other end 
but the glory of victory, or the benefit of their 
slaves, which it enables them to add to their nation, 
or sacrifice to their brutal fury; and it is very sel- 
dom, that they take any pains to give their wars 
even the colour of justice. They sometimes fall 
on one nation and sometimes on another, and sur- 
prize some of their hunters, whom they scalp and 
bring home as prisoners. Their senators wink at 
this or rather encourage it, as it tends to keep up 
the martial spirit of the people, inures them to 
watchfulness and hardships, and gives them an ear- 
ly taste for blood. The qualities of an Indian war 
are vigilance and attention, and to give and avoid 


/ 


43 


a surprise; and patience and strength to endure the 
intolerable fatigues and hardships which always at- 
tend it. 

They often enter a village, while the strength of 
the nation is employed in hunting, and massacre 
all the helpless old men, women and children, or 
make prisoners of as many as they can manage, or 
have strength enough to be useful to their nation. 
They often cut off small parties of men in their 
huntings; but when they discover an army of their 
enemies, their way is to throw themselves flat on 
their faces among the withered leaves, the colour 
of which their bodies are painted exactly to resem- 
ble. They generally let a part pass unmolested, 
and then, rising a little, they take aim, being excel- 
lent marksmen, and setting up a tremendous shout, 
which they call the war-cry, they pour a stream of 
musket bullets on the enemy, having long since laid 
aside the use of arrows. The party attacked returns 
the same cry. Every man in haste retires behind 
a tree, returns the fire of the adverse party, as soon 
as they arise from the ground to give the second 
discharge. 

Having fought some time in this manner, the 
party which thinks it has the advantage rushes out 
of its cover, with small axes in their hands, which 
they dart with great address and dexterity. They 
redouble their cry, intimidate their enemies with 
menaces, and encourage each other with a boastful 
display of their own brave actions. Thus having 
come hand to hand, the contest is soon decided, 
and the conquerors satiate their savage fury with 


44 


the most shocking insults and barbarities to the dead, 
biting their flesh, tearing their scalps from their 
heads, and wallowing in their blood, like the wild 
beasts of the forest. 

The fate of their prisoners is indeed miserable. 
During the greater part of their journey homewards 
they suffer no injury; but when they arrive at the 
territories of the conquering state, or at those of 
their allies, the people from every village meet 
them, and think they show their attachment to their 
friends by the barbarous treatment of the unhappy 
victims, who on their arrival at their destined sta- 
tion, generally bring with them marks of the most 
cruel and merciless treatment. 

The conquerors enter the town in triumph; the 
war captain waits upon the head men, and in a low 
voice gives them a circumstantial account of every 
particular of the expedition, of the damages the 
enemy have suffered and his own loss in it. This 
being done the public orator relates the whole to 
the people. Before they yield to the joy which the 
victory occasions, they lament the friends they have 
lost in the pursuit of it. The parties most nearly 
concerned are apparently afflicted with a deep and 
real sorrow; but by one of those strange turns of 
the human mind, fashioned to any thing by custom, 
as if they were disciplined in their grief, upon the 
signal for rejoicing, in a moment the tears are 
wiped from their eyes, and they rush into an ex- 
travagance and phrenzy of joy for their victory. All 
this time the fate of the prisoners remains undeci- 


45 


tied, until the old men meet and determine con- 
cerning their distribution. 

It is usual to offer a slave to each house that has 
lost a friend, giving the preference according to the 
gre atness of the loss. The person who has taken 
the captive attends him to the door of the party’s 
cottage, where he delivers him, and with him gives 
a belt of wampum, to show that he has fulfilled the 
purpose of the expedition, in supplying the loss of 
a citizen. They for some time view the present 
that is made them, and according as they think him 
or her, for the sex matters not, proper or improper 
for the business of the family, or as they take a 
capricious liking or displeasure to the countenance 
of the victim, or in proportion to their natural bar- 
barity, or their resentment for their losses, they 
decide whether they will receive him into the fami- 
ly, or sentence him to death. If they be received 
into the family, happy is their lot, as they are then 
accepted into the place of the father, son or husband 
that is lost; and they have no other mark of their 
captivity, but that of not being suffered to return 
to their own country, to attempt which would be 
certain death. On the contrary, if they dislike the 
captive, they throw away the belt with indignation. 
Then it is no longer in the power of any one to 
save him, the nation is assembled as upon some 
great solemnity, a scaffold is raised, and the prison- 
er tied to the stake. He instantly begins his death 
song, and prepares for the ensuing scene of cruelty 
with most undaunted courage. On the other side, 
they prepare to put it to the utmost proof; with 


46 


every torment that the mind of man, ingenious in 
mischief, can devise. 

It would be too shocking to the ear of our youth- 
ful reader to be told what inhuman tortures are in- 
flicted on him, till at last, one of the chiefs, out ct 
compassion, or weary with cruelty, generally puts 
an end to his life with a club or a dagger. — The 
body is then put into the kettle, and this barba- 
rous employment is succeeded by a feast equally 
inhuman. 

On this occasion, the women, forgetting the fe- 
male nature, and transferring themselves into some- 
thing worse than furies, act their parts, and even 
outdo the men in this scene of horror. The prin- 
cipal persons of the country sit round the stake 
smoking, and looking on without the least emotion. 
What is most extraordinary, the sufferer himself, 
in the little intervals of his torments, smokes also, 
appears unconcerned, and converses with his tortu- 
rers about indifferent matters. Indeed, during the 
whole time of his execution there seems a contest 
between him and them, which shall exceed, they in 
inflicting the most horrid pains, or he in enduring 
them with a firmness and constancy almost above 
human. Not a groan, not a sigh, not a distortion 
of countenance, escapes him; he possesses his mind 
entirely in the midst of his torments; he recounts 
his own exploits, informs them what cruelties he 
had inflicted upon their countrymen, and threatens 
them with revenge that will attend his death; and 
though his reproaches exasperate them to a pei feet 
state of madness, rage, and fury, he continues his 


47 


* 

reproach, as even of their ignorance in the act of 
tormenting, pointing out himself more exquisite 
methods and more sensible parts of the body to be 
afflicted. 

We do not dwell upon these circumstances of 
cruelty, which so much degrade human nature, out 
of choice; but as all who mention the customs of 
this people, have very particularly insisted upon 
their behaviour in this respect, and as it seems ne- 
cessary, in order to give a true idea of their charac- 
ter; and serves to show in the strongest light, to 
what an inconceivable degree of barbarity the pas- 
sions of men let loose will carry them. It will 
point out to us the advantages of a religion that 
teaches a compassion to our entmies, which is nei- 
ther known nor practised in other religions; and it 
will make us more sensible than some appear to be, 
of the value of commerce, the benefits of a civiliz- 
ed life, and the delights derived from literature* 
which, if they have abated the force of some of the 
natural virtues by the luxuries which attend them, 
have taken out likewise the sting of our national 
vice, and softened the ferocity of our human race 
without enervating their courage. On the other 
hand the constancy of the sufferers in this trying 
scene, shows the wonderful powers of an early in- 
stitution, and a ferocious thirst of glory, which 
makes men imitate and exceed what philosophy and 
even religion do not produce. 


48 


The next beautiful and advantageous information , 
is a view of this very extensive and delightful 
eountry . 

SOUTH AMERICA; 

This division of America is an extensive penin- 
sula, joined to the northern division by the Isthmus 
of Darien. 

Extent. South America extends from about the 
12th degree north, to the 54th degree of south lati- 
tude, without including the island of Terra del 
Fuego; making a length of about 4600 miles. Its 
extreme breadth is 3540 miles. From this extent, 
however, it diminishes both ways. Toward the 
southern extremity, it is very narrow. 

Climate. The climate of South America has 
great varieties. In the southern parts, the inhabi- 
tants experience severe fr sts, and almost perpetual 
winter. In the torrid zone, the mountains are so 
lofty, that the greatest inconvenience is the extreme 
cold of the mountains, and the moisture of the plains. 
The provinces contiguous to the equator, are sub- 
ject to excessive heat, and to violent storms of rain, 
thunder, and lightning. 

Face of the Country. The face of this country 
is overspread with mighty rivers, which flow through 
Immense tracts of verdure and fertility. The sea 
coast is very little broken by gulfs or inlets, except 
such as are formed by the mouths of the rivers. 


49 


Though a country of spacious plains, its mountains 
are the most lofty on the globe; and volcanoes, which 
are numerous, are terrible and sublime. 

Mountains. The most extensive chain of moun- 
tains is the Andes, which may be traced the whole 
length of South America, from north to south, 4600 
miles. Chimborazo, the highest point in this chain, 
nearly under the equator, is 20,280 feet above the 
level of the sea, and 5000 feet higher than any 
mountain in the eastern hemisphere. Catapaxi, a 
volcano, 25 miles southeast of Quito, is 18,600 feet 
in height. 

There are other remarkable chains of mountains 
beside the Andes, which run from west to east. 
The first is that of the Northern Coast, between 
nine and ten degrees of north latitude. The high- 
est points of this chain, are 14 or 15,000 feet above 
the level of the sea. Several of its summits are 
covered with perpetual snow, and often pour down 
torrents of boiling sulphureous water. 

The second range, or that of Parima, between 
three and seven degrees north latitude, is but little 
known. It stretches from the Andes east towards 
Popayan, forming numerous cataracts in the waters 
of the Oronoko. 

The third chain, or that of Chiquitos, unites the 
Andes of Peru and Chili with the mountains of 
Brazil and Paraguay. The highest summits are 
between 15 and 20 degrees south latitude. 

Lakes. South America has no inland seas, and 
but few lakes, and those are small compared with 
the immense lakes of North America. In Ama- 

E 


50 


zonia and Brazil, there are none. Titicaca, in Peru, 
is the most important piece of water in South 
America; its figure is oval, its circumference about 
240 miles, and its depth 70 or 80 fathoms. 

Rivers. The river Amazon, called also the Ma- 
ragnon, is the largest river in the world. A number 
of rivers which rush down with amazing impetuo- 
sity from the eastern declivity of the Andes, unite 
in a spacious plain, and form this noble river. In 
its progress, it runs 3300 miles from west to east 
across South America, and falls into the Atlantic 
ocean under the equator, by a mouth 150 miles 
broad. It is interspersed with a vast number of 
islands, which are too often overflowed to admit of 
culture. Some of the rivers, which fall into it, are 
very broad and deep. The chief of these, from the 
south and southwest, proceeding from the mouth 
westward, are Uragua, Paratina, Madeira, Purus, 
Yula, Yulacina, Ucayal. From the north and north- 
west, progressing from its mouth are Parima, Negro, 
Yupura, Issa, and Napo. It received the name of 
Amazon from Francis de Orillana, who was deputed 
in 1516, to explore the courses of this river. He 
penetrated to a considerable distance, and fought 
several nations of Indians, till his passage was op- 
posed by a band of female warriors* armed with 
bows and arrows. 

The second river in size is the Rio de la Plata, 
or River of Silver. It flows into the Atlantic ocean 
between Capes St. Anthony on the south, and St. 
Mary on the north, which are about 150 miles apart. 
At some distance above the mouth of this, as well 


51 


as of the Amazon river, the shore cannot be seen 
from the middle of the stream. 

It is chiefly composed of two great streams, the 
Parana and Paraguay. The navigation is danger- 
ous. The waters are of a petryfying quality, and 
are said to be a specific against rheums and deduc- 
tions. 

The Oronoko, or Oronoque, including its wind- 
ings, takes a course of 1380 miles, and preserves 
the freshness of its waters twelve leagues from the 
mouth of that vast and deep channel within which 
it was confined. It may be considered however as 
having many mouths, formed by the islands that lie 
before its opening towards the ocean. This river 
is remarkable for its regular rising and falling once 
a year. It begins to swell in April, continues rising 
for five months, and, during the sixth, remains at 
its greatest height. From October it begins gradu- 
ally to subside till March throughout the whole of 
which it remains in a fixed state of its greatest 
diminution. These alternate changes are regular 
and invariable. 

The other rivers of South America, belong more 
to particular districts, in the description of which 
they will be noticed. 

Botany , Zoology , and Mineralogy. TJhe plants 
and animals of South America, exhibit the saihe 
generic and specific differences from those in the 
old world, that were mentioned in the account of 
the northern portion of this continent, but are still 
more numerous and luxuriant in growth, in conse- 
quence of the greater warmth of the climate. In a 


52 


general view, it may be remarked that there exists 
in South America several animals which bear a 
similarity to kinds in the old world, but are inferior 
in size. Thus, the camel has a representative in 
the lama; the hippopotamus in the tapiir; the lion 
in the puma, or cougar; the leopard, in the jaguar. 
It is affirmed, however, that the South American 
tiger is as large and formidable as any beast of prey 
whatever. Monkies are extremely numerous and 
various in the American forests, and there is a 
great variety of the squirrel, weasel, and opossum 
tribes. The splendour of the plumage of the birds 
is only rivalled by that of the birds of India. The 
serpents and alligators of its streams and marshes 
are of enormous magnitude. In metallic treasures, 
it is well known to surpass every region, that of 
Mexico perhaps excepted. 

Divisions. The whole of this extensive country, 
except that occupied by the aborigines, was lately 
divided into colonial governments, belonging to 
Spain, Portugal, Holland, and France. The pos- 
sessions of Holland and France have fallen to En- 
gland. Some of the provinces of Spain have de- 
clared themselves independent, and others are in a 
state of revolt, and if Spain is subdued will cer- 
tainly become independent. Portugal is removed to 
Brazil, and the province has become, and probably 
will continue, the principal country. 

The Spanish territories are divided into vice- 
royalties, audiencies, provinces, governments, de- 
partments, and missions, or parishes, established 
among the Indians. The enumeration of them is 


53 


unnecessary. The grand divisions are three vice- 
royalties; that of New Granada, on the north; of 
Peru, including Chili, on the west; and of Buenos 
Ayres on the southeast. 


TERRA FIRMA, OR CASTILE DEL ORO. 

The northernmost province of South America is 
1400 miles long, and 700 broad, situated between 
the equator and 12o N. lat. and between 15 q E. 
and 7° W. Ion. It is bounded on the E. by the 
Atlantic ocean, and Surinam; S. by Amazonia and 
Peru; W. by the Pacific ocean; and N. by the pro- 
vince of Veraguay, in North America, and the gulf 
of Mexico, here denominated the North sea. 

Name and Divisions. It is called Terra Firma, 
because it was the first part of the continent dis- 
covered by Columbus. It is divided into the pro- 
vinces of Terra Firma proper, or Darien, Cartha- 
gena, St. Martha, Venezuela, Cumana, Paria, New 
Granada and Popayan. The province of Darien is 
a narrow isthmus that joins North and South Ame- 
rica, but is generally reckoned a part of. the latter. 
It lies in the form of a crescent about the great bay 
of Panama, in the South sea, and is 400 miles long. 
The breadth is usually called 60 miles from north 
to south, but it is only 37 miles broad from Porto 
Bello to Panama, the two chief towns of the pro- 
vince. 

E2 


54 


Bays and Rivers. On the shores of the Pacific 
ocean are the bays of Panama and St. Michael. In 
the North sea are Porto Bello, Sino, and Guiana. 

The principal rivers are the Darien, Chagre, 
Santa Maria, Conception and Oronoko. A parti- 
cular description of the last has already been given. 

Climate , Soil and Productions . The climate here 
is extremely hot and sultry during the whole year. 
From the month of May to the end of November, 
the season called winter by the inhabitants, is almost 
a continued succession of thunder, rain, and tem- 
pests; the clouds precipitating the rain with such 
impetuosity, that the low lands exhibit the appear- 
ance of an ocean. Great part of this country is of 
consequence almost continually flooded: and this, 
together with the excessive heat, so impregnates the 
air with vapours, that, in many provinces, it is very 
unwholesome. The soil is very different, the inland 
parts being extremely rich and fertile, and the coast 
sandy and barren. It is impossible to view, without 
admiration, the perpetual verdure of the woods, the 
luxuriance of the plains, and the towering height of 
the mountains. This country produces corn, sugar, 
tobacco, and fruits of all kinds. 

The desert of Los Lamos, like the Sahara of 
Africa, is a prodigious tract of barrenness. For 
2000 square leagues the level of the country does 
not differ five inches. No vegetation cheers this 
plain of sand; serpents and reptiles are the only 
inhabitants the traveller meets, for several days. 

Chief Towns. Carthagena is the principal sea- 
port town in Terra Firma. It is situated on the 


55 


Atlantic ocean, in north latitude 10° SI'. The bay 
on which it stands is seven miles wide, from north 
to south, and so smooth, that ships are no more agi- 
tated than on a river. The town and its suburbs are 
fortified in the modern style. The streets are straight, 
broad, and well paved. The houses are principally 
brick, and one story high. This city is the resi- 
dence of the governor of the province of Cartha- 
gena; and of a bishop, whose spiritual jurisdiction 
extends .over the whole province. There is here 
also a court of inquisition. 

Panama is the capital of Terra Firma Proper, 
and is situated in north latitude 8° 45', upon a ca- 
pacious bay to which it gives its name. It is the 
great receptacle of the vast quantities of gold and 
silver, and other rich merchandize, from all parts 
of Peru and Chili; here they are lodged in store- 
houses, till the proper season arrives to transport 
them to Europe. 

Porto Bello is situated close to the sea, on the 
declivity of a mountain which surrounds the whole 
harbor. The convenience and safety of this harbor' 
is such, that Columbus, who first discovered it, gave 
it the name of Porto Bello, or the Fine Harbor, in 
north latitude, 9° 


PERU 

Lies south of Terra Firma, and stretches along 
the shore of the Pacific ocean 1800 miles. It is 
funded south by Chili, east by the Andes, a grand 


56 


natural limit, separating it from Amazonia. It lies 
between the equator and 25° south latitude, and 
spreads between 15° east, and 6° west longitude, 
though its breadth is in no place more than 500 
miles. 

Divisions. Peru is divided into three provinces, 
Quito, Lima, and Los Charcos. 

Rivers. The Amazon rises among the Andes in 
Peru; but directs its course eastward, through 
Amazonia. Most of the rivers of the Andes run 
into the Atlantic, and can hardly be considered as 
belonging to Peru. There are no streams of con- 
sequence in the whole extent of Peru, that fall into 
the Pacific ocean. 

Climate. According to the local disposition of 
the country, its high or low situation, we find in 
Peru all the varieties of temperature, from the ex- 
treme of heat to that of cold. The plains are tem- 
perate, the beaches and vallies are hot, and the moun- 
tains are covered with eternal snow and ice, while 
their bowels are flaming with fire. In some parts 
of Peru, it never rains, which defect is supplied by 
a gentle dew, which falls every night. Other parts 
are visited by dreadful tempests, thunder and light- 
ning. 

Soil and Productions. The inland parts are fer- 
tile, but the sea coast is barren. 

This country produces fruits peculiar to the cli- 
mate, and most of those in Europe. The culture 
of maize, of pimento, and cotton, which was found 
established there, has not been neglected; and that 


57 


of wheat, barley, cassava, potatoes, sugar, and of 
the olive and vine, is attended to. 

Animals. The most remarkable animals in this 
country are the Peruvian sheep, called lamas and 
vicunnas. The lama, in several particulars, re- 
sembles the camel, as in the shape of the neck, 
head, and some other parts; but has no bunch, is 
much smaller, and is cloven footed. Its upper lip 
is cleft, like that of a hare, through which, when 
enraged, it spits a venomous juice, that inflames the 
part on which it falls. The wool, with which it is 
covered, is of different colors, but generally brown. 
These animals are generally docile, so that the In- 
dians use them as beasts of burden. Their flesh is 
esteemed preferable to mutton. The vicunna re- 
sembles the lama in shape, but is much smaller, 
and its wool shorter and finer. 

Mines. Nature never offered to the avidity of 
mankind, in any country on the globe, such rich 
mines as those of Peru. There are several gold 
mines, but those of silver are found all over the 
country. Those of Potosi are the most celebrated. 

Cities and Towns. The city of Lima is the capi- 
tal of Peru, and of the whole Spanish empire in 
South America. It is seated in a delightful valley, 
two leagues from the sea; and is two miles long, 
and one broad. There are many magnificent edi- 
fices, particularly churches, in Lima. It is said to 
contain 54,000 inhabitants, who are immensely rich. 
All travellers speak with amazement of the deco- 
rations of gold, silver, and precious stones, which 
load the walls of the churches. 


58 


Cusco, the ancient capital of the Peruvian em- 
pire, lies in a mountainous country, at a distance 
from the sea, and has long been on the decline, but 
is yet a very considerable place. 

Quito is next to Lima in population, if not su- 
perior to it. It is, like Cusco, an inland city. 


CHILI 

Extends along the Pacific ocean, from the south- 
ern boundary of Peru, in latitude 24 degrees south, 
to the 45th degree, being 1460 miles. Its breadth 
is about 234 miles. Chili has Paraguay and Tucu- 
man east, and Patagonia south. It contains 378,000 
square miles. To this must be added Cuyo, or 
Cujo, east of the Andes, 406 miles long and 402 
broad, containing 163,000 square miles. 

Climate and Soil. The climate of Chili is one of 
the most delightful in the world, being a medium 
between the intense heat of the torrid, and the 
piercing cold of the frigid zones. There are few 
places in this extensive country where the soil is 
not exuberantly rich. Chili is the most opulent 
kingdom in America. 

Animal and Vegetable Productions. The horses 
and mules of Chili are in great esteem. Oxen, 
sheep and goats are fattened in the luxuriant pas- 
tures. The coasts abound with many excellent 


59 


fish; there are also vast numbers of whales and sea 
wolves. 

The soil produces Indian and European corn, 
hemp, grapes, and all other fruits. The European 
fruit trees are obliged to be propped, to enable them 
to sustain the weight of the fruit. Orange trees 
are in bloom, and bear fruit throughout the year. 
The inhabitants press a kind of muscadine wine from 
the grapes, which far exceeds any thing of the kind 
made in Spain. 

Mines. Mines of gold, silver, copper, tin, quick- 
silver, iron and lead, abound in this country. Vast 
quantities of gold are washed down from the moun- 
tains by brooks and torrents ; the annual amount of 
which, when manufactured, is estimated at no less 
than 800,000 dollars. 

Population and Militia. In 1778, the number of 
white inhabitants in Chili was reckoned at 80.000; 
negroes 140,000; besides Aborigines, more nume- 
rous than both. This number has since much in- 
creased. The militia, in 1792, amounted to 15,856 
men. Those Indians who are not subject to the 
Spanish yoke, are very honest in their commercial 
transactions; they live in small huts. They are 
brave and warlike, and all the attempts of the Span- 
iards to subdue them have proved ineffectual. 

Towns. St. J ago, the capital of Chili, and the 
seat of government, is 90 miles from the ocean, and 
21 from the Andes. It is a large, handsome place. 
It contained, in 1776, 46,000 inhabitants, which 
have since increased, and trades largely with Buenos 
Ayres. The inhabitants are said to be remarkably 


60 


polite and hospitable. Valparaiso, the port of 
St. Jago, is the most commercial city in Chili, lat. 
33o 3 ' S. Conception is the second city in rank 
in Chili. It had 13,000 inhabitants in 1776. 

Valdivia stands between the rivers Callacalles 
and Portero, where they fall into the South sea. It 
was built by the Spaniards in 1551, and is one of the 
largest cities in Chili. 

The chief town in the province of Cuyo, is St. 
John de Frontiera. 


BUENOS AYRES 

Is an inland country, bounded north by Ama- 
zonia, east by Brazil, south by Patagonia, and west 
by Chili and Peru. It extends from 12° to 37° S. 
lat. 1500 miles long, and 1000 broad. This exten- 
sive country has been called by various names. 
While attached to Peru, it was called the province 
of Charcas . It has since been called Paraguay , 
and La Plata , a name which it took from the river 
La Plata. At present the most common name is 
the viceroyalty of Buenos Ayres. 

Divisions . It is divided into six provinces, Para- 
guay, Parana, Guira, Uragua, Tucuman, and Rio 
de la Plata. 

Rivers . The country is watered by innumerable 
streams and rivers, which form the grand river La 
Plata, already described. 


61 


Climate, Soil and Produce. From the situation 
of this country, some parts of it are extremely hot, 
from the almost vertical influence of the rays of the 
sun; while other parts are pleasant and delightful. 
But the heat is in some measure abated by the gentle 
breezes, which generally begin about nine or ten 
o’clock in the morning, and continue the greatest 
part of the day. Some parts of the country are very 
mountainous; but in many others, are extensive and 
beautiful plains, where the soil is very rich, pro- 
ducing cotton, tobacco, and the valuable herb called 
Paraguay, together with a variety of fruits. There 
are also rich pastures, in which are bred such herds 
of cattle, that it is said the hides are the on! part 
exported; while the flesh is left to be de\oured by 
the beasts of the wilderness. 

Paraguay sends annually into the kingdom of 
Peru, 1500 or 2000 mules. They travel over dreary 
deserts for the distance of 8 or 900 leagues. The 
province of Tucuman furnishes to Potosi, annually, 
16 or 18,000 oxen, and 4 or 5000 horses, brought 
forth and reared upon its own territory. 

Chief Towns. Buenos Ayres is the capital of 
this country. Its situation, on the river La Plata, 
is healthy and pleasant, and the air temperate. It is 
regularly built. The number of inhabitants is about 
30, (XX). One side of the town is defended by a 
fortress, with a garrison of six or seven hundred 
men. The town stands 180 miles from the sea. 
The access up the river is very difficult. 

Monte Video stands on a hay of the same name, 
on the north side of the river La Plata, 20 leagues 

F 


above its mouth. It lies east of Buenos Ayres, and 
has its name from a mountain which overlooks it. 


GUIANA. 

The extensive country of Guiana, or Carri- 
bi ana, stretches along the coast of the Atlantic 
ocean, from the mouth of the river Oronoko, to 
cape North, at the mouth of the Amazon river, 
between 2 Q and 8 Q of north latitude, and between 
12° and 25 q of east longitude. 

Divisions. The western part of this country, 
called Surinam, belonged lately to the Dutch; the 
middle part to the French, whose capital was Cay- 
enne, and from which the whole territory received 
its name. The eastern parts were disputed by the 
French and Dutch, but the principal places in the 
country have lately been taken by, and are now in 
possession of the English. 

Guiana is now divided into five districts, called 
Essequebo, Demerara, Berbisch, Surinam, and 
Cayenne. The four first receive their names from 
rivers, which run through them, and the last from 
the city of Cayenne, in France. 

Climate and Seasons. In the months of Septem- 
ber, October and November, the climate is unheal- 
thy, particularly to strangers. A hundred miles 
back from the sea is a hilly country, a pure, dry, 
wholesome air, where a fire sometimes would not 


63 


be disagreeable. The seasons were formefly divided 
into rainy and dry; but owing probably to the country 
being more cleared, and a free passage opened for 
the circulation of the air, this distinction has in a 
great measure ceased. 

Rivers . A number of fine rivers pass through 
this country; the principal of which are Essequebo, 
Surinam, Demerara, Berbisch, and Canya. Esse- 
quebo is 2l miles wide at its mouth, and is more 
than 300 miles in length. Surinam is a beautiful 
river, three quarters of a mile wide, navigable for 
the largest vessels 12 miles, and for small vessels 
sixty or seventy miles further- Its banks, quite to 
the water’s edge, are covered with evergreen and 
mangrove trees, which render the passage up this 
river very delightful. The Demerara is about two 
miles wide at its mouth, opposite to the fort* This 
river is navigable for vessels that can pass the bar, 
upwards of 100 miles. 

Soil and Productions. The land along the sea 
coast is low and marshy, and subject to inundations 
during the rainy seasons. The soil is extremely 
rich, producing cotton, sugar, tobacco, Indian corn, 
ginger, indigo, rice, fruits, coffee, and other neces- 
saries of life.. In the woods are many species of 
durable timber, and others highly valuable for orna- 
mental purposes. This country has never experi- 
enced hurricanes, those dreadful scourges of the 
West Indies; and droughts, from the lowness of the 
land, it has not t^* fear; nor has the produce ever 
been destroyed by insects, or by the-blast. 


64 


Animals, Serpents, £s?c. The woods abound with 
plentv of deer, hares, and rabbits, a kind of buffalo, 
.and two species of wild hogs, one of which (the 
peccary) is remarkable for having something re- 
sembling the navel on its back. 

The woods are infested with several species of 
tigers, but with no other ravenous or dangerous 
animals. The rivers are rendered dangerous by 
alligators. Scorpions and tarantulas are found here, 
of a large size, and great venom, and oth^r insects 
without number, some of them very dangerous and 
troublesome; the torporific eel, also, the touch of 
which, by means of the bare hand or any conductor, 
has the effect of a strong electric shock; serpents 
also, some of which are venomous, and others, as 
has been asserted by many credible persons, are 
from twenty five to fifty feet long. In the woods 
are monkies, the sloth, and parrots in all their varie- 
ties; also, some birds of beautiful plumage, among 
others, the flamingo, but few or no singing birds. 

Chief Toxvns. Paramaribo, situated in lat. 6Q 
north, on Surinam river, four leagues from the sea, 
is the principal town in Surinam. It contains about 
2000 whites, one half of whom are Jews, and 8000 
slaves. The houses are principally of wood; some 
few have glass windows, but generally they have 
wooden shutters. The streets are spacious and 
straight, and plaifted on each side with orange and 
tamarind trees. 

Demarara, at the mouth of the river of the same 
name, contains about 1800 white inhabitants. 


65 


Cayenne is the principal settlement in the dis- 
tinct of that name; it is on an island near the coast. 
It contains 1200 white inhabitants, exclusive of the 
garrison. 

Aboriginals. The most considerable of the In- 
dian nations of Guiana are the Carribbees, the Ar- 
vaques, the Yaos, and the Galibis. The Charaibes, 
or Carribbees, are enterprising, and so cautious of 
surprise, that they post out guards and centinels, 
with as much care and art as the Europeans. They 
are said to have been formerly cannibals. The 
Galibis are a pacific people; they manufacture ham- 
mocks and cotton beds, and are very ingenious. 
Such as are near the Europeans have learnt to han- 
dle fire-arms- The Charaibes, in the West Indies, 
are thought to derive their origin from these nations. 
The Charaibes of Guiana still fondly cherish the 
tradition of Sir Walter Raleigh’s alliance; and to 
this day preserve the English colours, which he left 
with them at parting about 200 years ago. 


BRAZIL 

Comprehends all the Portuguese settlements in 
America, and is situated between the equator and 
35 degrees south latitude. A line drawn from the 
mouth of the Amazon to the mouth of the La 
Plata, not far from the 15th degree of east longi- 
tude, would nearly correspond with its western 
f 2 


66 


boundary, from which it extends eastward to about 
40 degrees east. Its length, from north to south, 
is 2500 miles; its breadth 700. It is surrounded on 
all sides by the mouths of the rivers Amazon and 
La Plata and the Atlantic ocean, except the west, 
where it is bounded by Amazonia and the Spanish 
possessions. 

Divisions. It has three grand divisions; the 
northern, which contains eight provinces or cap- 
tainships; the middle, which has five; and the south- 
ern, which has three; in all sixteen provinces. 

Bays , Harbors and Rivers. These are, the har- 
bours of Pernambuco, All Saints, Rio Janeiro, the 
port of St. Vincent, the harbour of Gabriel, and the 
port of St. Salvador. There is a great number of 
noble streams, which unite with the rivers Amazon 
and La Plata, beside others, which fall into the At- 
lantic ocean. 

Climate , Soil and Productions. The climate of 
Brazil is temperate and mild, when compared with 
that of Africa; owing chiefly to the refreshing wind, 
which blows continually from the sea. The air is 
not only cool but chilly, through the night; so that 
the natives kindle a fire every evening in their huts. 
As the rivers in this country annually overflow their 
banks, and leave a sort of slime upon the land, the 
soil, in many places, is amazingly rich. The vege- 
table productions are Indian corn, sugar canes, to- 
bacco, indigo, hides, ipocaquanha, balsam, Brazil- 
wood; the last is a red colour, hard and dry, and is 
chiefly used in dying, but not the red of the best 
kind. Here is also the yellow fustic, of use in dying 




67 


yellow: and a beautiful kind of speckled wood, made 
use of in cabinet work. Here are five different sorts 
of palm trees, some curious ebony, and a great va- 
riety of cotton trees. 

This country abounds in horned cattle, which are 
hunted for their hides only, 20,000 being sent annu- 
ally into Europe. There is also a plenty of deer, 
hares, and other game. Among the wild beasts 
found here, are tigers, porcupines, janouveras, and 
a fierce animal, somewhat like the grayhound; mon- 
kies, sloths, and the topirasson, a creature between 
a bull and an ass, but without horns, and entirely 
harmless; the flesh is very good, and has the flavour 
of beef. There is a numberless variety of fowl, 
wild and tame, in this country. 

Mines . There are gold mines in many parts of 
this country, which have been wrought with con- 
siderable profit to the government. There are also 
many diamond mines, which have been discovered 
there; they are of all colours, and of almost every 
shade. 

Commerce. The trade of Brazil is very great, 
and increases every year. They import 40,000 
negroes annually. The exports from Brazil are 
diamonds, sugar, tobacco, hides, drugs, and medi- 
cines; and they receive in return, woollen goods of 
all kinds, linens, laces, silks, hats, lead, tin, pewter, 
copper, iron, beef and cheese. They also receive 
from Madeira a great quantity of wine, vinegar, 
and brandy; and from the Azores, 25 ,000k worth 
of other liquors. 


68 


Chief Towns . St. Salvador is the capital of 
Brazil* 1 his city, which has a noble, spacious, and 
commodious harbour, is built on a high and steep 
rock, having the sea on one side, and a lake forming 
a crescent on the other* The situation makes it in 
a manner, impregnable by nature; and they have 
besides added to it very strong fortificatious* It is 
populous, magnificent, and beyond comparison, the 
most gay and opulent city in all Brazil. 

Rio Janeiro is a rich and populous city, having 
many elegant churches and other buildings, situated 
within a large bay, and containing 200,000 inhabi- 
tants. 

Religion . Roman Catholic. 

Natives. The native Brazilians are about the 
size of the Europeans, but not so stout. They are 
subject to fewer distempers, and are long lived. 
They wear no clothing. 

History , &?c. The Portuguese discovered this 
country in the year 1500, but did not plant it till 
the year 154tf, when they took possession of All 
Saints Bay, and built the city of St. Salvador, which 
is now the residence of the viceroy and archbishop. 
The Dutch invaded Brazil in l62j, and subdued 
the northern provinces; but the Portuguese agreed, 
1661, to pay the Dutch 8 tons of gold to relinquish 
their interest in this country, which was accepted. 
The Portuguese remained in peaceable possession 
of all Brazil till about the end of 1762; when the 
Spanish government of Buenos Ayres, hearing of 
a war between Portugal and Spain, took, after a 
month’s siege, the Portuguese frontier fortress, 


69 


called St. Sacrament; but, by the treaty of peace, it 
was restored. In 1807, the regent and royal family 
of Portugal emigrated to Brazil, where the Portu- 
guese monarchy is now established. 


AMAZONIA. 

This large country has never been perfectly ex- 
plored by any European nation. It is supposed to 
be about 1400 miles long, and 900 broad; situated 
between the equator and 20 degrees south latitude. 
It is bounded north by Terra Firma and Guiana; 
east by Brazil; south by Paraguay; and west by 
Peru. It receives its name from the river Amazon, 
which, with its innumerable branches, waters the 
whole territory. 

The air is cooler in this country than could be 
expected, considering it is situated in the middle 
of the torrid zone. This is partly owing to the 
heavy rains, which occasion the rivers to overflow 
their banks one half of the year, and partly to the 
cloudiness of the weather which obscures the sun a 
great part of the time he is above the horizon. 
During the rainy season, the country is subject to 
dreadful storms of thunder and lightning. 

The soil is extremely fertile; producing cocoa 
nuts, pine apples, bananas, plantains, and a great 
variety of tropical fruits; cedar, red wood, pak, 
ebony, log wood, sugar canes, cotton, potatoes, bal- 



70 


sam, honey, &c. The woods abound with tigers, 
wild boars, and game of various kinds; the rivers 
and lakes with fish. The crocodiles and water ser- 
pents render fishing a dangerous employment. 

The natives of Amazonia are of a good stature, 
have handsome features, long black hair, and cop- 
per complexions. They spin and weave cotton 
cloth, and build their houses with wood and clay, 
and thatch them with reeds. Their arms are darts 
and javelins, bows and arrows, with targets of canes 
or fish skins* The several nations are governed by 
their chiefs, or caciques. 

In reading the history of South America, it is 
pleasing to reflect that any part of it has escaped 
the ravages of European conquerors. Amazonia 
remains unsubdued; and the original inhabitants 
still enjoy their native freedom and independence. 


PATAGONIA. 

T Hts country is less known than any other part 
of South America. It lies south of Paraguay and 
Chili, and is bounded east by the Atlantic ocean; 
south it is divided from Terra del Fuego by the 
straits of Magellan, leading into the Pacific ocean, 
which limits it on the west. 

The climate is much colder in this country than in 
the north, under the same parallels of latitude. It 
is almost impossible to say what the soil would pro- 


71 


duce, as it is not cultivated by the natives. The 
northern parts are covered with wood; but, towards 
the south, there is not a single tree large enough 
to be of use to mechanics. There are good pas- 
tuoes, which feed incredible numbers of horned 
cattle and horses. 

There are some rivers and bays on the coast of 
this country, but they are little known. 

Patagonia is inhabited by a variety of Indian 
tribes, among which are the Patagons, from whom 
the country takes its name: the Pampas and the 
Cossores. They all live upon fish and game, and 
what the earth produces spontaneously. Their huts 
are thatched, and notwithstanding the rigour of the 
climate, they wear no other clothes than a mantle 
made of seal skin, or the skin of some beast, and 
that they throw off when they are in action. They 
are exceedingly hardy, brave and active, making 
use of their arms, which are bows and arrows 
headed with flints, with amazing dexterity. They 
always bury their dead on the eastern shores, look- 
ing towards the country of their fathers. They 
are supposed to have emigrated originally from 
Africa. 

The Spaniards once built a fort upon the straits 
of Magellan and left a garrison in it, to prevent any 
other European nation from passing that way into 
the Pacific ocean; but most of the men perished by 
hunger, whence the place obtained the name of 
Port Famine; since that fatal event, no nation has 
attempted to plant colonies in Patagonia* 


72 


As to the religion or government of the Patago- 
nians, we have no certain information. Some have 
reported that they believe in invisible powers, both 
good and evil; and that they pay a tribute of grati- 
tude to the one, and deprecate the wrath and ven- 
geance of each other. 


SOUTH AMERICAN ISLANDS. 

The Falkland Isles lie near the straits of 
Magellan, a little to the northeast of the utmost ex- 
tremity of South America, between 51° and 53° S. 
lat. and between 21 o and 5 o of E. Ion. They 
were discovered by Sir Richard Hawkins, in 1594; 
the chief of the two islands, he called Hawkins’ 
Maideni.and, in honour of queen Elizabeth. The 
soil of these islands is bad, and the shores are beat 
by perpetual storms. A British settlement was 
made here, of which they were soon after dispos- 
sessed by the Spaniards, 1770. The Spaniards now 
send criminals from their settlements on the conti- 
nent, to these inhospitable shores. 

Terra del Fuego, or Land of Fire, lies at the 
southern extremity of South America, is separated 
from the main on the north, by the straits of Ma- 
gellan, and contains about 42,000 square miles. It 
consists of several islands, which receive this name 
on account of the vast fires and smoke which the 
first discoverers of them perceived. The island of 


73 

Staten Land lies on the east of the principal island. 
They are all barren and mountainous; but there 
have been found several sorts of trees and plants, 
and a variety of birds on the lower grounds and 
islands, that are sheltered by the hills. Here are 
found winter’s bark, and a species of arbutus, which 
has a very well tasted red fruit, of the size of small 
cherries. Plenty of celery is found in some places, 
and the rocks are covered with very fine muscles. 
A species of duck is here met with; also geese and 
falcons. The natives are of a middle stature, with 
broad, flat faces, high cheeks, and flat noses. They 
are clothed in the skins of seals. The villages con- 
sist of a few miserable huts, in the form of a sugar 
loaf. The only food seems to be shell fish. Though 
these countries are only in latitude 56 degrees south, 
they are colder than Lapland in 70 degrees north. 

Georgia. To the eastward of Terra del Fuego, 
in latitude 54 degrees south, and about 39o 30' east 
longitude, is a cluster of barren islands, called 
Southern Georgia. One of them is between 50 
and 60 leagues in length. It is a dismal region, 
the land of ice. The vales are destitute of shrubs; 
coarse grass, burnet, and linchen are the only vege- 
tables. 

Chiloe, 150 miles long, and 21 broad, is sepa- 
rated from the coast of Chili by a narrow sea, form- 
ing a bay. It is between 42 and 44 degrees south 
latitude. The island produces all necessary provi- 
sions. Ambergris, in great quantities, is found on 
the coast. It has an indifferent sort, called Chocas. 
Castro, the chief town, stands between two brooks, 
G 


74 , 


with a small castle, which commands the harbour. 
The houses are few and scattered. 

Juan Fernandes is situated in the Pacific ocean, 
390 leagues west of the continent, latitude 33 de- 
grees south, longitude four degrees west. It is 
supposed to have been inhabited by a Spaniard, 
whose name it retains, although long since aban- 
doned by him and his nation. It is more remark- 
able for having been the residence of Alexander 
Selkirk, a Scotchman, whose life and adventures 
furnished materials for the celebrated novel of 
Robinson Crusoe. The harbour is in Cumberland 
bay, on the north side of the island. It is repre- 
sented, by those who have visited it, as an earthly 
paradise. On the southwest is a small isle, called 
Goat Island, and a rock, called Monkey Kc*v, almost 
contiguous to it. 

Massasuero, called by the Spaniards Juan Fer- 
nandes, lies 22 leagues west by south of the last 
mentioned Island; on the north side is good anchor- 
age for shipping. 


HISTORY OF SOUTH AMERICA. 

For the following information respecting a faith- 
ful history of South America, I am indebted to that 
celebrated Spanish author Don Vicent Pazos, a na- 
tive of upper Peru: which is the familiar recollec- 
tions of his childhood, or the result of his mature 


75 


knowledge, and of personal observation. As there 
are many scenes throughout the revolutionary war 
of this country, in which he has borne a part, either 
as an actor or sufferer, and which are therefore too 
deeply imprinted on his memory to be easily for - 1 
gotten; — For the rest I rely upon authentic infor- 
mation and public documents. 

It will be recollected that I have described Upper 
Peru in the general geography of South America, 
as comprehending seven provinces or intendencies; 
to wit, Potosi, Charcas or La Plata, Cochabamba, 
La Paz, Santa Cruz de la Sierra or Puno, Moxos 
and Chiquitos. I shall now proceed to present a 
geographical view of each of these provinces in 
their order, with a particular account of their cli- 
mate, soil, productions, and other physical proper r 
ties. 

The region which extends from Jujui to Oruro, 
from 1 7° 52', to 22o, south latitude, comprises the 
most mountainous, and irregular tract of the coun- 
try; ascending gradually on every side to Potosi, 
which is the loftiest part. Here the two noble 
rivers of Amazon and La Plata take their rise 
within about seventy miles of each othf r, in lat. 
17 o 30' S and which discharge themselves into the 
Atlantic ocean; the former under the equator and 
the latter, at the 35th degree of south latitude, at 
a distance of nearly 2 ,500 miles from each other. 
This whole tract is cold, rude, naked and moun- 
tainous; it is the metallic region of the country; 
and is the source of a number of small rivers, of 
which those rising on the west oi the mountains run 


76 


into the Pacific, and those on the east, into the rivers 
La Plata and Amazon, and ultimately into the At- 
lantic ocean. 

From Oruro, to the Cordillera of Vilcanota or 
Santa Rosa, where is the great wall built by the 
Incas to divide the departments of Colla-Suyo and 
Tavantyn-Suyo, there is a beautiful valley of 100 
leagues in extent, called Collao, and the waters 
which descend from the Cordilleras, and meander 
through this valley, form the great lake Titicaca, 
situated in its centre. There are two Cordilleras 
of the Andes which extend through this country 
from north to south, which are called the eastern 
and the western; the eastern is the loftiest, and its 
summits are covered with perpetual snow, while the 
western Cordillera exhibits less snow, and is more 
low, broken, and irregular, and therefore the com- 
munication between the intervening valleys and the 
Pacific ocean, is not interrupted. The contrary is 
the fact with respect to the Cordilleras of Chili, 
which are impassable during several months of the 
year. Both Cordilleras are full of gold and silver 
ores, but it is on the eastern Cordillera only where 
the lavaderos or pure washed gold is found. The 
geographical position or latitude of this region has 
but little influence upon its productions, the fertility 
of its soil or the temperature of its climate; for, 
from the union of a variety of physical phenomena, 
such as the height of the Cordilleras and their being 
covered with perpetual snow, their enormous masses, 
the extent of the plains, the declivities of the moun- 
tains, which present a broad aspect towards the 




77 


east, it possesses a climate of almost every variety 
of temperature, and a soil, suited to the productions 
of Europe and Asia; of wheat and barley, wine and 
oil, cotton, indigo, sugar and spices; on the plains, 
which are clothed in perpetual verdure, there graze 
vast herds of cattle, horses and mules: in the middle 
regions of the mountains, which are covered with 
pines and oaks, &c. are found, a great variety of 
beautiful birds, among which are the parrot, ruisa- 
nor, &c. and in the loftier regions, which are bare, 
the ostrich; besides vast quantities of sheep, such 
as the Vicunas, Alpachas, Llamas, Guanacos, Chin- 
chillas; some of which, particularly the two first, 
yield a wool of singular fineness. Besides all these 
things which are produced in this comparatively 
small district, there are also found vast quantities 
of ores of gold and silver, and of metals of every 
kind. 


POTOSI. 

This intendency is bounded on the north by La 
Paz, on the west by the Pacific ocean, on the south 
by Salta, and on the east by Charcas or La Plata. 
It is the most southern province of Upper Peru, 
bordering on Rio de la Plata, and is divided into 
eight lesser provinces or sub-delegations, which are 
Atacama, Carangas, Lipez, Porco, Pilaya or Cinty, 
Tarija, Chavanta, and Paria. 

g 2 


78 


Atacama borders on the Pacific ocean, and has 
Arica or Low Peru on the north, and Chili, or the 
deserts of the same name, on the south, which are 
sixty leagues in extent. 

The high part of this province is cold, and its 
productions are such as are peculiar to cold cli- 
mates: such as farinaceous grains and roots. In 
the lower part, is the port of Cobija, (lat. 22o 39' 
S.) which is very much frequented by fishermen 
and coasting craft. Its trade consists principally in 
fish, of which there are two kinds that are caught 
in great abundance — the congreo and tollo — the lat- 
ter similar to the codfish. This province contains 
nine small towns or villages, the chief of which is 
San Francisco de Atacama. The population is 
about 30,000 souls. It contains a mountain called 
Concho , which is celebrated for its copper mines; 
and here is a manufactory of copper hammers for 
the miners of Potosi. There are also ores of silver; 
and large masses of this metal in its pure state have 
been found here. There are also mines of cobalt; 
and jasper, talc, alum, and a variety of beautiful 
crystals, are found in abundance. By the river 
Loxa, the people of the interior of this province 
carry on a trade with the coast of Peru. 

Carangas is a considerable province; its chief 
town is Tarapacha, which is large, and inhabited 
by a great number of Spaniards and creoles, on 
account of the celebrated silver mines of Aullagas, 
which are within this province. This province, 
like the others which lie on the Pacific ocean, has 
a mild and temperate climate. 


79 


Lipez, whose chief town is of the same name, 
has a cold climate, as it is situated on the Cordil- 
leras. It is about sixty leagues west of the city of 
Potosi. In this province are produced an abun- 
dance of horned cattle, sheep and goats: it is a fine 
grazing district. It has also rich mines of gold and 
silver. Here is the famous mine of the silver table , 
where the metal has been cut off with a chisel. 

On the south and south-east of Potosi, lies the 
province of Chinchas, whose chief town is Tupiza. 
Through this province runs the great post road from 
Buenos Ayres to Potosi. It is the largest province 
of Potosi, extending from north to south 144 miles, 
and from east to west 300 miles to the river San 
Juan in Tarija, by which it is separated from that 
province. The province of Chichas is situated one 
half on the mountains, which is cold, and the other 
half in the temperate and beautiful valleys of Tarija. 
The mountainous part is full of mines of gold and 
silver; but principally of gold, of which the richest 
is the mine of Suyapacha, celebrated for the defeat 
of the royalists during the present revolution. Its 
chief town is Tupiza, which has a population of 5 
or 60' -0 whites. In this town are the workshops or 
laboratories of the miners, for extracting the metals 
and refining them. During the present revolution, 
there have been produced here annually between 
30 and 35.000 lbs. of gold and silver. The products 
of the mines of Charoma, Estarca, and Cerrilos, 
are of a very superior quality. 

The farmers of this province rear vast numbers 
of asses and goats, of which the former is a great 


I 


80 

article of commerce; and at Yavi in this province 
are situated the large estates of the marquis of 
Toxo. 

The road leading from Buenos Ayres, which di- 
vides this province from that of Tarija, is full of 
quartz, which contains gold, copper, lead, and iron, 
and at the small town of Mojoz there has been 
discovered a stratum of magnetic iron ore, full of 
particles of gold, which is picked up after the heavy 
rains. 

On leaving these cold regions, and travelling 
three hundred miles to the east and north-east of 
Potosi, after crossing a ridge of small mountains, 
we descend into the beautiful and fertile valleys of 
Tarija. There are four of these valleys, and within 
them are situated two lakes of salt water. It is 
difficult to describe the salubrity of the climate, the 
fertility of the soil, and the abundance of the rivu- 
lets and streams which water these valleys. This 
province is bounded by the deserted villages of 
Pilayaon the north and west, by Jujui on the south, 
and by countries inhabited by savage Indians on the 
east. The chief town, which is of the same name, 
is situated delightfully on the banks of the river 
Tarija, lat. 21° 3i/ S.; its streets cross each other 
at right angles; its inhabitantssare composed of all 
the different casts of the country, and amount to 
about lu,000 souls. It has two rich convents, and 
sends a deputy to the general congress at Buenos 
Ayres. Its soil is humid and \ arm, well adapted 
to grazing, and produces oil and wine in great 


81 


abundance; cotton of the finest quality, and flax, 
growTiere spontaneously in the forests and fields. 

Besides the richness of the soil, this province 
contains mines, which were formerly very produc- 
tive, as that of Choco, which yielded gold ore, that 
afforded from 50 to 60 per cent, of the metal. 
Among the gold mines, that of Chiloco is the rich- 
est. The inhabitants of this province are famous 
carriers, and remarkable for their physical strength. 
But notwithstanding the great fertility of this pro- 
vince, it is sterile, when compared with the neigh- 
bouring country inhabited by the Chireguanos In- 
dians. 

Passing up the valleys of Tarija, we next arrive 
at the province of Cinty or Pilaya, and which en- 
joys a climate which is not inferior to any on the 
globe. It produces abundance of fine wheat, grapes, 
roots, &c. Of the grapes, are made wine and brandy, 
and if not of a superior quality, it is only owing to 
the unskilfulness of the manufacturer. The popu- 
lation of the chief town, of the same name, is 12,000, 
and of the whole province 62,000. The rivers 
Toropalca, and Suypacha, which arise in the Cor- 
dilleras of Lipez, flow through these valleys, form- 
ing the great rixer of San Juan, w-hich divides the 
two provinces of Pilaya, and Tarija. This river, 
which is destined at no distant period to become the 
channel of a great commerce, runs north until it 
unites with the river of Cinty, then winds westward 
until it meets the Pilcomayo; then through the In- 
dian countries, until it meets the Guadalquivir, 
which comes from the northern Cordilleras; then 


82 


unites with the river Conception, and runs through 
the country of Chayhuaya, until it meets the river 
Salinas; then through the country of Gran-Chaco, 
where it meets the river Bermejo front the north, 
which was navigated in 1794 by Cornejo, a citizen 
of Salta; below on the west, it meets the river Pes- 
cado, and runs to the valley of Senta and New Oran, 
a town built by Pizarro, the last president of Char- 
cas, to encourage the navigation of the river; here 
it unites with the river Senta, and below is the river 
Santa Cruz, and all this part is navigable; afterwards 
it unites with the river of Salta and Jujui, where it 
takes the name of Rio Grande, and under this name 
runs to Paraguay, and there again takes the name 
of the Bermejo, and then running eastwardly twenty- 
four leagues, to the city of Corrientes; it here finally 
assumes the name of La Plata, and running a south 
eastwardly direction, empties itself into the Atlan- 
tic ocean. This river is navigable at least ; ,300 
miles, and within 300 miles of Potosi* The head 
of navigation is what is called the pass of the In- 
dians, forty leagues from the famous Indian town 
of Omaguaca, from which there is a good road to 
Potosi. 

These rivers are full of fish of almost every kind, 
which constitute the principal food of the Indians 
of their borders, which abound with forest and fruit 
trees, such as orange, peach, apple, &c« 

I have been thus minute in my description of 
these rivers, as they mav hereafter become the 
channel of an extensive commerce into the interior 
of Peru, and because this small province of Tarija 


83 


possesses a climate of such various temperature, 
that an inhabitant of Norway and of Italy, may 
find a climate like his own, suited to his constitution 
and habits. 

On the north and east of Potosi, are situated the 
provinces of Paria and Porco; The chief town of 
the former is Toledo, which was founded by the 
viceroy of that name. This country is also cold. 
In the Cordillera of Condo-Condo, are mines of 
gold and silver. In this province the river Desa- 
guadero, which is an outlet of the great lake Titi- 
caca, is lost in the ground. The wool of this pro- 
vince, and of which there is abundance, is equal to 
that of Segovia in Spain; the sheep are uncommonly 
large, and the mutton is very fat and of fine flavour. 
The best sheep sell for half a dollar each. The 
cheese, which is made of sheep’s milk, is superior 
to the finest cheese of Europe, all the varieties of 
which I believe I have tasted; it is known as the 
cheese of Paria. 


PORCO. 

This province extends 120 miles from north to 
south, and 180 miles from east to west. Its chief 
town is Puna, situated at the bottom of the moun- 
tain of the same name, where the Incas procured 
immense quantities of silver, and even now, these 
mines are worked with great profit. Here the Span- 


84 


iards are numerous, and they are generally engaged 
in mining- In this province also, are mines of rock 
salt, in the town of Yocalla, from whence are pro- 
duced vast quantities, which are used in the various 
processes of extracting the metals from their ores. 

In the centre of this province is situated the city 
of Potosi, lat 19o 30' S. being 1650 miles distant 
from Buenos Ayres, 1215 miles from Lima; and 
300 miles from the Pacific coast. The city is built 
at the bottom of the celebrated mountain of the 
same name, which is so famous for the immense 
riches which it has been continually pouring forth 
for three centuries. From whatever side you ap- 
proach this mountain, you will be struck with its 
singular appearance. Its figure is conic, and it is 
covered with green, red, yellow, and blue spots, 
which give it a very curious appearance; it resem- 
bles no other mountain in the world; it is entirely 
bare, without any trees or shrubs. By its side there 
is a smaller mountain, called Huayna Potosi while 
the principal mountain is called Hatun Potosi y 
meaning father and son. In the night, when the 
mouths of the mines are lighted up, the beautiful 
and striking appearance of this mountain can scarce- 
ly be imagined, much less described. 

The city of Potosi is nearly three leagues in cir- 
cumference; it is divided into the city proper, and 
Tngenios , where are situated the laboratories of the 
miners, and which are separated by a small river 
called the river of the lakes, over which there is a 
stone bridge. The city and the Tngenios are near- 
ly a mile apart. The streets of the city are narrow 


85 


and irregular, and paved with round stones, with 
side walks. On the north of the city there is an 
extensive promenade, with fountains of water, but 
no trees or shrubs, and but a very little verdure, 
which is a small species of barley. The houses are 
uniformly of one story, built of stone and brick, 
with balconies of wood, and without chimneys. 
Each house has a yard, and sometimes three, in the 
rear, and in almost every yard there are fountains 
of water, which are lined with stone, and often very 
beautiful. The houses contain, generally, a draw- 
ing room, dining room, bed rooms, &c. and each 
servant has his separate apartment. The houses of 
the wealthy, who are numerous here, are splendidly 
furnished. At the time I visited this city, in 1808, 
there was a church rebuilding in the public square, 
and which was not interrupted during the revolu- 
tion, both Belgcano and Goyeneche giving orders 
that the work should go on. There are in the city 
three monasteries, five convents, and nineteen paro- 
chial churches. The churches of the monks and 
nuns are richly ornamented with silver. Every 
altar has its front of solid silver, and there are five 
altars in every church; also four chandeliers of at 
least two yards in height, with corresponding 
branches, all of silver. The other churches are not 
so rich, but their utensils are always of silver. The 
Archbishopric of Charcas contains 180 churches, 
which are more or less furnished with silver orna- 
ments; those churches near the mines are the rich- 
est, such as those of Puna, Chayanta, Popo, Tu- 
piza, &c. 

On the north side of the public square is situated 
the Mint, which is a grand edifice of free stone, of 
a quadrangular figure, two stories high, and nearly 
450 feet square, including three pits or yards, to- 

H 


86 


gether with offices for the governors and workmen, 
and apartments for the extensive machinery, its 
corridors are of ivory, made at Biscay; the machi- 
nery for coining is very complicated, which was 
also brought from Spain, although the artists of the 
country do all the repairs, and are skilful engravers. 
The machinery is all worked by mules. The coin- 
ing of this mint is superior to that of Lima, or 
Santiago. 

According to official statements published in the 
“ Mercurio Peruano,” there were coined in the mint 
of Potosi, from 1 790 to 94, both inclusive, the sum 
of 5527,967,566, which makes an average of 555,593, 
513 for each year. According to the accounts of 
Humboldt, there were coined in the year 1790, 
g3, 942, 592, and the proportion of gold and silver 
was as 1 to 200. It is generally understood at 
Potosi, that the common yearly average is about 
$>4,000,000. There is also a bank in this city, call- 
ed the bank of St. Charles, which is established for 
the purpose of buying gold and silver bullion for 
the mint, at fixed prices; this establishment belongs, 
like the mint, to the government. The price of 
pure ingots of silver is 81 an ounce,* and of manu- 
factured silver or plate 87 1 2 cents; the price of 
gold is from §12 to 8 16 an ounce, varying accord- 
ing to its carats. These prices are always the same 
the only difference is in the quality of the metal. 
The government enjoys the profit in these pur- 
chases. 

* The intrinsic value of pure silver, by the ounce in the 
United States, is $1,29 — of silver of standard fineness, jgl,15. 
Gold of 22 carats is worth $17,77; of 24 carats, or pure gold, 
$19,39. These are the mint prices; the prices of commerce 
are now much higher. 


87 


There are six houses of public entertainment, or 
hotels, and a great number of tippling shops, in the 
city. There is a market-house of two hundred 
yards in length, which is supplied with every kind 
of production from all parts of the country; with 
fruits from the neighbouring vallies, such as chiri- 
moyas, peaches, oranges, pine apples, &c. with meat 
and, vegetables of various kinds. Fish, however, is 
extremely scarce and deay. The fish called Dorado 
is highly esteemed, and commands a great price. 
It is reported in Potosi, that some years ago, a clerk 
of some rich man of that city, was sent to market 
to purchase one of these fish, and that he found the 
clerk of some other man of wealth, bargaining for 
a fine one; that the clerks got into a strife to see 
which would out-bid the other; that finally one of- 
fered § 5000 , and took the fish; and the story adds, 
that the master of the clerk who was out- done, 
was so incensed that he turned him out of his ser- 
vice. 

Generally speaking, the markets of Potosi are as 
abundantly supplied (the article of fish excepted,) 
as those of New York or Philadelphia. When I 
was there, I did not find the prices so extravagant 
as has generally been reported by travellers. Baron 
de Humboldt observes, that provisions are very 
dear in Potosi, without recollecting that the neigh- 
bouring countries are extremely fertile. The ex- 
penses of living are certainly much higher in Potosi 
than in any other city of Upper Peru; but are very 
low when compared to the cities of North America. 
The price of wheat flour is about §1,25 per 100 lbs. 
and a fine sheep sells for less than §1. The roads 
leading into the city present a curious spectacle in 
the morning, of many thousand lamas, asses, and 
mules, loaded With the produce of the countr> , for 


88 


the market. The roads are irregular and broken, 
particularly to Condorapacheta, distant twenty-five 
leagues from the city, but by no means dangerous. 
The large timbers used for wheel axles in the mills, 
are brought from Tucuman on carriages. The road 
of Despoblado, which crosses the table land of the 
Cordilleras between Salta and Oruro, is more even 
and smooth, and on this road about 80,000 mules, 
in troops of from 4 to 5000 , are driven annually to 
Lima to be sold. 

The climate of Potosi is very cold; and, for the 
distance of twelve miles around the city, there are 
no trees or shrubbery of any kind, and nothing 
vegetates except a species of green moss. In the 
months of May and June the mornings are ex- 
tremely cold, as these are winter months in this cli- 
mate; but the nights are remarkably serene, and mild, 
and the sky is very beautiful. It is not so cold but 
that flowers are kept in rooms without fires, during 
the severest weather. 

The houses are without chimnies and fires, and the 
apartments are kept warm by being closed during the 
cold season, and plentifully covered with Alpacha 
skins, and by burning perfumery in them. On en- 
tering a house, a visiter is always presented with a 
silver chafing-dish of perfumery burning; this is al- 
ways the first salutation. 

There are frequent snow storms here, but the snow 
never remains on the ground longer than twenty 
hours; the cattle are never housed. 

On the hills above the town there are about thirty 
artificial lakes, for supplying the city with water, 
and turning the mills of the miners. It is a re- 
markable fact, that notwithstanding their great ele- 
vation, these lakes are never frozen over, although 
there is much frost in their neighbourhood on the 


8J 


mountains. It frequently happens that these sup- 
plies of water fail, tor want of rains, and tnen the 
mills are stopped, and the operations of the miners 
in extracting the metals suspended. 

The population of the city of Potosi, according 
to the calculations of Canete, who was assessor- 
general ot that intendency, and had a perfect know- 
ledge of all the country, amounted, in 1808, to 
40,000; and this statement I believe to be correct 
for that period. Mons. Fresier, who travelled in 
that country in 1714, says the population th n was 
f 0,000, and that the Spaniards were to the Indians 
as 1 to 6; that there were nineteen parishes, now 
there are but sixteen. Wilcocke, in his history of 
Buenos Ayres, states, that in 1807 the population 
was 70,000, and that including all those employed 
in the various processes of mining, it would amount 
to 100,000; but Alcedo, who wrote thirty years 
ago, says the number of inhabitants then was only 

25.000. ' 

The rebellion of Tupac Amaru wasted the popu- 
lation of this city, and greatly checked its progress, 
but it has rapidly augmented during the last twenty- 
five years. The official statements published by the 
government of Buenos Ayres, give the population 
of the province or intendency as amounting to 

112.000, without including Indians. 

This city is the focus of all the commerce be- 
tween Buenos Ayres and the interior provinces, and 
is a place of great business. The Azogueros #, or 
proprietors of mines, receive liberal advances from 
the government to enable them to carry on their 

* Iu Mexico, the Aznguerns , according to Humboldt, are 
miners, or those who are employed in the amalgamation of 
metals. In Peru, these persons are called Benejiciadoret. 

H 2 


90 


woi*ks; these advances are 825,000 for every Tnge v 
nio , or amalgamation work, which each Azoguero 
shall establish, and some have two or three. 1 his 
money is lent on the condition that the government 
receive one shilling on every ounce of silver pro- 
duced by the Azoguero. This class of men, whose 
capital is thus liberally augmented, have greatly in- 
creased the business, and added to the embellish- 
ments of the city. They live in the most profuse 
and princely style; it is not uncommon for them to 
possess gold plate: such as plates, goblets, spoons, 
forks, &c, They employ great numbers of clerks, 
and have numerous attendants. 

This city is much frequented by strangers from 
different parts of the country; it is a place of great 
gayety and dissipation. There are no theatres, and 
the principal amusement for all classes is gambling; 
and faro-banks and billiard tables are scattered all 
over the city. The city is immensely rich in gold 
and silver; money is within the reach of every body, 
and very abundant, as may be supposed, when more 
than 810,000 are coined every day, the year round. 
The Azogueros are extremely profuse in their ex- 
penditures, squandering their enormous wealth with 
the same liberal hand with which it is poured into 
their lap. As the source of their wealth is in their 
inexhaustible mines, and if poor to day, they may 
be rich to-morrow, their habits become essentially 
different from those of the merchant or manufac- 
turer, whose profits depend upon calculation and 
economy. 

The manufactures of this city are in a wretched 
state, being confined principally to the making of 
leather, hats, and tools from imported steel, which 
is sold at an enormous price. The leather is made 
from goat-skins, which are of superior quality and 


91 


very abundant here. Gold leaf is also manufactured 
in great quantities. This article is much used in 
the churches, and the candles even are gilded be- 
fore they are lighted; and in the private houses of 
the rich, ‘he leaves of the flowers which they have 
in great abundance in their drawing rooms, are often 
gilded with gold leaf. There are no carriages in 
this city, and when the ladies take the air, it is on 
the backs of horses or mules, or in sedan chairs, 
which are very common. There are persons here 
whose profession it is to teach the mules and horses 
to travel with an easy gait, for the ladies. There 
is another mode of travelling which is curious: a 
chair is fixed on poles which are laid across the 
backs of two mules, and in which two or three per- 
sons frequently ride. The countess of Casa Real, 
a few years ago, attempted to introduce coaches 
into the city, but the first time her carriage was 
drove into the street, it was lairly ran away with by 
the mules, and dashed to pieces against a church. 
This city is situated on the side of the lower part 
of the mountain, in the valley at the foot of it and 
is altogether too steep and irregular to admit of 
wheel carriages. 

In the other part of the town, called Yngenios , 
which lies north west of the city, in the valley , are 
the mills or amalgamation works of the miners. The 
population of this part consists of Indians, Kaachas 
or Cholo miners, and other workmen, and amounts 
to about 6000 souls. The Indians of the Mtta, 
which is a kind of annual conscription, by which 
the Indians of several provinces in Upper and Lower 
Peru are obliged to work in the mines, present a 
most miserable and shocking appearance; they are 
employed in the hardest labour of the mines, such 
as stamping the ores, raising them from the mines, 


92 


and attending to the trituration, which is done by 
the mills, and by which they are continually expos- 
ed to inhale the deleterious powders of the minerals. 
The price of their labour is 50 cents per day, and 
although experience shows that their labour is not 
useful as they are unfit for mining, and those mines 
are invariably worked the best in which the Indians 
of the Mita are not employed, yet the infamous 
avarice of the Miner os, dooms them to these noxious 
employments. Ulloahad the wickedness to say that 
the labour of these Indians is not severe; and the 
dictionary of the Spanish academy, ashamed of 
giving a correct definition of the Mita, has con- 
cealed the truth. The poor Indians are obliged 
to sleep in the open, cold air, on the bare ground, 
and from their exposure, the noxious inhalation 
of the mineral dust, and the hardships of their 
servitude, at least one third of every conscription 
die. 

The Kaachas are, from practice, well acquainted 
with the business of mining, as it is carried on in 
Peru. Their numbers at Potosi, are between 4 and 
6000. Their wages are from 1 to S2 a day, accord- 
ing to their skilfulness. The benefisciadores, have 
§6 a day for superintending the works. The Kaachas 
are very fond of spirituous liquors, drinking at once, 
almost their daily wages. It is not their wages 
which induces them to labour, but a custom in the 
mines, which is this; the mines are worked frorp 
Monday noon to Saturday noon, on account of the 
proprietors; but from Saturday noon to Monday 
noon, including Sunday, the miners work on their 
own account. This is an ancient and inveterate 
custom, and cannot be changed. It frequently hap- 
pens that the miners disco\er new veins, and some- 
times take the ore of their employers, which was 


93 


left by them at the end of their week’s work, and 
extract the metal after their own fashion, and in the 
most rude manner. The quantity of silver obtain- 
ed in this way, never has been calculated; and there- 
fore all estimates of the quantity of the precious 
metals produced by the mines of South America, 
which have been made by travellers, must be erro- 
neous. M. Torres, has justly applied this remark 
to the statements of the Baron de Humboldt, and 
adds, as a further reason for the inaccuracy of these 
statements, that they are taken from the registers of 
mints and custom houses, and that it is the interest 
of the miners and merchants to save, as much as 
they can, the high duties which are imposed upon 
the precious metals. 

There are in Potosi, 120 mills or amalgamation 
works, although they are not all employed; each one 
has a large pit or yard enclosed, and various offices 
for the superintendants and workmen, and stables 
for the mules. These mills resemble a common 
French plaster mill; the wheel is about 25 or 30 feet 
in diameter, and is so constructed as to lift up and 
down an iron or copper hammer, weighing 200 
pounds, by which the ores are reduced to a fine 
powder. The timbers for the axles of these wheels 
are very long and strong, and each one costs about 
g800; the great price is owing to the distance which 
they are brought, and the badness of the roads 
through which they are carried on rudely construct- 
ed carriages. The mills are attended each by two 
or three Indians, whose faces are muffled in order 
to prevent the inhalation of the mineral dust. 

The process of separating the metals from their 
ores, which I witnessed in Potosi, is very well de- 
scribed by Wilcocke, and it is as follows: the ores 
are first reduced to a fine powder or flower by the 


94 


hammers, which I have described; sometimes, in 
order to render them more friable, they are pre- 
viously roasted, in an oven or furnace. The pow- 
der is sifted through fine iron or copper sieves which 
are large, and handled by four or five Indians; the 
fine powder is taken away for amalgamation, and 
the coarse is returned to the mill. The ore is some- 
times pulverized dry, and sometimes with water; if 
dry, it is afterwards wet, and well kneaded with the 
feet for a considerable time, which is done by the 
Indians. The mud is then laid upon a floor in 
square parcels of a foot thick, each containing about 
2500 weight, and these masses are called cuerpos or 
bodies. On these heaps about 200 pounds of com- 
mon salt are thrown, which is moulded and incor- 
porated with the metallic mud for two or three 
days. After this, the proportion of mercury which 
is judged proper, is added to the mass. The quan- 
tity of mercury used depends upon the supposed 
richness of the ore. They generally allow from 
four and an half to six pounds of mercury to one 
pound of silver. The masses are now stirred eight 
or ten times a day in order to promote the chemical 
action, and to accelerate the amalgamation of the 
mercury and silver; and for this purpose, lime is 
also frequently added, and sometimes lead or tin ore. 
In cold weather this process of amalgamation goes 
on slowly, so that they are often obliged to stir the 
mass, during a month or six weeks. When the sil- 
ver is supposed to be all collected, the mass is car- 
ried to the Tinas del Lavadero , or vats, made of 
stone or wood, and lined with leather, into which a 
current of water is directed, to wash off the earth. 
Tht re are commonly three vats through which the 
mineral is passed, and the same process is perform- 
ed in each. When the water runs off clear, the 


9 * 


amalgam is found at the bottom of the vats. This 
is put into a woollen bag, and hung up for tht quick- 
silver to drain out; it is then beat with flat pieces 
of wood, and pressed bv a weight laid upon it; 
when as much of the quicksilver as can be got out 
by this, means, is expelled, they put the paste or 
residuum into a mould of wood, made in the form 
of a pyramid, at the bottom of which is a copper 
plate full of holes; after it has become hard, the 
mould is taken off and the mass with its copper bot- 
tom is placed over a vessel of water, and is covered 
with an earthen cap or reversed crucible, on which 
ignited charcoal is placed in order to evaporate the 
quicksilver, some part of which is collected by the 
cap with which the mass is covered, and is saved. 
After the evaporation, there remains a lump of 
grains of silver, which require to be fused before 
they become united into a mass; they are then cast 
into ingots, which are stamped. The ingots are cast 
in a pyramidal form when destined for the mint; if 
intended for private use, they are moulded into a 
variety of fancy figures according to individual 
taste, and are frequently employed to ornament the 
houses of the proprietors of the mines. In these 
tedious and rude processes of amalgamation, it is 
calculated that one third at least of the silver is lost, 
and twice the time and expense incurred, which 
would be necessary, in a more enlightened mode, 
to complete the operation. Of the mercury, it is 
impossible to say how much is wasted, but accord- 
ing tor Humboldt, the Azogueros of Mexico, by 
whom metallurgy is much better understood, lose 
in general from eleven to fourteen ounces of mer- * 
cury for every eight ounces of silver. The bene - 
fic'taclores of Potosi, are by far the most skilful of 
all Upper Peru. In the other provinces, instead of 


96 


triturating wheels, they use grindstones to pulverise 
the ores, and every other operation is equally rude 
and slovenly. The mode I have described, is the 
only one practised in Potosi, in extracting the metals 
from their ores, and the chemical principles upon 
which the various processes depend, are probably 
not at all understood by those who have practised 
them for many years. 

The mountain of Potosi, which contains the far- 
famed silver mines, is 6000 varas (16,250 feet,) 
above the level of the sea, according to Luis Goudin, 
of the academy of sciences of Paris, referred to by 
Alcedo, in his “ dictionario geografico de America:” 
and its height above the neighbouring plain, accord- 
ing to Baron de Humboldt, is 1624 varas (4397" 
•feet.) From these data we may fix the elevation of 
the city of Potosi to be about 11,000 feet above the 
level of the sea; an elevation nearly twice as great 
as the white hills of New Hampshire. 

At a point distant 1492 feet from the summit of 
the mountain, its circumference has been calculated 
at upwards of four miles; and at another point 980 
feet lower, at upwards of eight miles. Alcedo states 
the circumference of the mountain at its base to be 
three miles, while Wilcocke says it is eighteen 
miles. I should not myself judge it to be more 
than nine; I have never Walked around it, but I 
have frequently ascended to its summit; the walk 
generally occupied an hour. The view from the 
top of this lofty mountain is the most grand and 
picturesque in the world, of valleys, and lakes, and 
mountains; this is the loftiest point of the Cordille- 
ras in that quarter, and I believe there are but few 
peaks that are higher in all Upper Peru. But the 
sublimity and beauty of the surrounding scenery 
did not so n>uch interest my feelings as the ceh> 


97 

bratecl mountain under my feet, which has poured 
forth for so many years its lavas of silver upon the 
world; — to animate enterprise and reward industry; 
to pamper the luxurious, and minister to the com- 
forts of the sober and virtuous; to disseminate 
knowledge and religion, and to spread the desola- 
tions of the sword — marshalling armies in the field, 
and pointing the thunder of navies on the ocean; 
filling cities with monuments of taste and art, and 
overwhelming them with ruin; founding mighty 
empires, and levelling them in the dust: — inciting, 
in short, to virtue and to crime, and being the 
source of much good, and the “ root of all evil,” 
in the world. 

This mine was discovered so late as the year 
1545, by an Indian named Hualpa, and accidental- 
ly; as he was pursuing his goats up the mountain, 
he laid hold of a bush, whose roots gave way, and 
laid bare beneath it a mass of pure silver. In that 
country, however, the people say the first discover- 
er was not Hualpa, but Potocchi, Potossi, or Potoc- 
si, from whom the mountain takes it name. The 
first man who commenced working the mine was 
Thomas Villaroel, a Spaniard. These mines pro- 
duced, from the year of discovery to 1761, the sum 
of $ 929 , 000 , 000 , which have paid duties; and to 
our days, the enormous amount of $1 ,043,083,733. 
From the rude mode of working the mines, and the 
ignorance of the miners, the exterior part only of 
the mountain has been worked, and the quantity has 
decreased so Httle in so many years, that the silver 
extracted from these mines has only diminished in 
the proportion of 4 to 1. It has been ascertained 
from experience, that the richest mines are the 
deepest; and this is the general fact with respect to 
the table silver mine, and all the other mines of Pe- 
ru; and the deepest mines are, of course, the most 
exposed to inundations from the water.— The rich- 

i 


98 


cst veins of Potosi have been inundated, and in 
consequence abandoned, and so has been the mine 
of Lipes, with whose owner I am well acquainted. 
When this mine was first discovered, he informed 
me that he cut the silver out with chisels, but the 
water soon flowed in, and obliged him to abandon 
it. In his i prosperity, he would lose at the gam- 
bling table thousands of dollars in one night, but 
when I knew him he was supported by the charity 
of his friends. 

In order to draw off" the water from the mines of 
Potosi, there was a subterranean gallery dug, under 
the direction of Weber, a German geometrician, 
who came to the country in the expedition of the 
baron de Nordenflycht, sent by the Spanish govern- 
ment. The geometrician received his salary of 
554,000 a year, but his work did not answer the pur- 
pose, and it was only carried on by him from mo- 
tives of private speculation. This gallery at its 
mouth is large enough to admit a man on horse- 
back: it is ornamented with masonry of stone at its 
entrance, with an inscription of the time of its com- 
mencement, &c. It extends into the mountain ho- 
rizontally, diminishing in its size, for the distance 
of 1 1-2 or 2 miles. Its sides are lined and its roof 
arched the whole way with stone. It is really of 
no use, except as a place to confine culprits in; and 
here were sent the troops of Charcas whoexpressed 
themselves in favour of the patriots, by the presi- 
dent Nieto. The work was begun in 1 77 9, and was 
still continued at the time I visited the mountain, 
in 1808. It is a monument of enormous expendi- 
ture, and of the most consummate folly. 

Afterwards, another scheme to drain off the water 
was projected, which was approved of by the Span- 
ish court; and by a royal decree of the 23d June, 
1780, the colonial government was ordered to take 
measures to obtain accurate information upon the 


99 


subject, and to employ some skilful person to take 
charge of the work. Don Rubin de Celis, a lieute- 
nant in the navy, was sent to Potosi as a fit person 
to undertake the project. It was to be a gallery so 
dug as to intersect the principal veins of metal, and 
the shafts which had been sunk for the purpose of 
light and ventilation. He made all the necessary 
calculations of the direction and dimensions of the 
gallery, and its probable expense, which was esti- 
mated at the different sums of gl, 000, 000 and of 
250,000, according to the mode in which the work 
should be executed. This project was never carri- 
ed into effect; and the richest veins of Potosi are 
still inundated with water. 

The road to the mines lies on the north-side of 
the mountain, as do also the mines. It ascends in 
a zig-zag direction; it is very wide, but is rude, un- 
even, and stony. On this road there are constant- 
ly employed at least 20,000 asses, in carrying the 
ores from the mines to the amalgamation works. 
The ore is conveyed in bags made of skins, on the 
backs of the animals, no carriages of any kind being 
employed. There are a great many mines open on 
the mountain; the shafts are of various sizes and 
depths, sometimes perpendicular, and sometimes 
horizontal, pursuing the course of the metallic vein. 
They are extremely incommodious to the work- 
men. In some parts there are spacious chambers 
excavated, where the ore has been taken out, the 
roofs of which are supported by huge pieces of tim- 
ber. The ore is obtained without difficulty by the 
rude pickaxes and other iron and steel instruments 
of the miners. It is raised to the mouth of the 
mine, when the shaft is perpendicular, by ropes, 
which are pulled by the Indians, and when the 
course of the shaft is oblique or horizontal, it is 
carried on the backs of the Indians in bags of skin. 
To afford him light in his dark retreat, the miner 


100 


has a tallow candle, stuck in his button hole or col- 
lar. The convenience or comfort of the miners is 
never consulted, and when they come down from 
the mountain on Saturdays, they present a most 
hideous picture of filth. They collect in throngs at 
the tippling houses in the city, spending their week’s 
wages in brandy and chicha, and they keep the town 
in an uproar, with the music of their guitars and 
flutes, and their drunken brawls. In no other city 
of Peru do the miners present so miserable an ap- 
pearance as in Potosi, for here only is the mita in 
force. 

The ores from which the metals are extracted 
are of various natures, consistencies, and colours; 
some of which are white and gray, mixed with red- 
dish spots called plat a blanca, or white silver. When 
this ore is broken, it exhibits grains of pure silver. 
Some ores are entirely black, exhibiting no silver, 
and these are called negrillos ; some black mixed 
with lead, called plomo ronco , or coarse lead, in 
which silver appears when it is scratched with a 
hard instrument; this is generally the richest. I 
have seen specimens of this ore which when broken 
exhibited pure silver in lumps. There is another 
species which, if rubbed against any hard substance, 
becomes red, and is therefore called rosicler , resem- 
bling a rose; it is harder than any of the other sorts, 
and is very rich. There is another species which 
is brilliant like talc , and is called paco; there is also 
an ore which is green, called cobri'sso , or copperish, 
and which is the most common ore; the others are 
rare. There are a great variety of silver ores in 
this mountain, the principal of which I have here 
given in the vulgar names of the miners, and at the 
same time have described their external characters, 
as they appear to the eye. These varieties are not 
so general in the other mines. 


101 


The ores of Potosi yield the metal in various 
proportions; soon after the discovery of the mines, 
the average was from 64 to 72 ounces per quintal. 
(100 pounds.) Since the commencement of the 18th 
century, the metals have produced only from 24 to 
32 ounces per caxonof 5000 pounds, or from 48-100 
to 64- 100 per quintal. BarondeHumboldt,whomakes 
these statements, also says, that from 1574 (29 years 
after the discovery) to 1789, the mean riches of the 
minerals have diminished in the proportion of 170 
to 1; while, as I have before stated, the quantity of 
silver extracted from the mines has only diminished 
in the proportion of 4 to 1; and if they are not the 
richest in the world, they rank immediately after 
the mines of Guanaxuato, the most celebrated in 
Mexico. 


CHARCAS OR LA PLATA. 

Tins intendency is bounded on the north by Co- 
chabamba, on the west and south by Potosi, and on 
the east by Santa Cruz de la Sierra, or Puno. It is 
divided into four lesser provinces or subdelegations, 
to wit, Tomina, Punabamba, Yamparaes, and Chay- 
anta. The population of the intendency is 112,000, 
without including Indians. The province of Tomina 
borders on the east on the country of the Chirigua- 
nos Indians, and lies south of the city of Charcas, 
the capital of the intendency. Its climate is warm; 
it has some vineyards and sugar plantations, and 
rears fine cattle and sheep. In this province is the 
beautiful plain of Tarapaya, which is a delightful 
region. 

Punabamba is bounded by Tomina on the north, 

I 2 


1 02 


by Potosi on the south, and on the east and south- 
east it borders on a country inhabited by savage In- 
dians, and on the west and north-west it is bounded 
by the province of Yamparaes. It extends 72 miles 
from east to west, and 42 from north to south. It 
lies south-east of the city of Charcas. This province 
is full of cultivated farms; it has no mines that have 
been discovered. Its population is about 5000. 

The province of Yamparaes contains sixteen towns 
or villages, and its chief town is San Sebastian. It 
is a small province, and mountainous. Its produc- 
tions are wheat, barley, fruits, &c. for the markets 
of Potosi and Charcas. It is situated a little south- 
east of the city of Charcas, the capitol of the inten- 
dency. This province is watered by the rivers Pilco- 
mayo and Cachimayo which flow into the river La 
Plata, and which are celebrated for the abundance 
and excellence of their fish. The river Pilcomayo 
has a fine meandering course through this province, 
and its banks are clothed with verdure, and covered 
with forest trees. 

Chayanta is bounded by Cochabamba on the north, 
by Oruro on the north-west, by Yamparaes on the 
south-east, and by Santa Cruz de la Sierra on the 
east. Its extent from north to south is 132 miles, 
and from east to west 108 miles. It contains 27 
towns, and has a population of 30,000. In the moun- 
tains there are mines of gold and silver which have 
been worked. It contains some forests, and is prin- 
cipally an agricultural district. 

The city of Charcas, the capital of the intenden- 
cy, is situated in the north-east part of it, and lies 
partly in the province of Yamparaes, and partly in 
that of Chayanta. It is distant 75 miles from Po- 
tosi, in a north-easterly direction, in latitude l9o 
south. This city, as I have stated, was founded by 
one of Pizarro’s captains, in the year 1538, and on 
the ruins of the ancient Indian town of Chuquisa- 


103 


ca,* by which name, as well as that of La Plata, or 
the city of silver, it is sometimes called. The popu- 
lation of this city is 15 , 000 , of whom 5000 are Span- 
iards and Creoles, and the remainder Mestizos, In- 
dians, and Negroes. 

The city stands in a plain, surrounded on every 
side by several small hills. Its climate is very fine, 
and its amosphere serene; except in the rainy sea- 
son, when there are sometimes thunder-storms. The 
streets cross each other at right angles, are very 
wide, well paved, and altogether the city is very 
neat. In the city there is a promenade, ornamented 
with colonnades and obelisks, in the centre of which 
is an artificial fountain of water. The houses are re- 
gularly of one story, with balconies of wood, and 
with spacious gardens in the rear. This city is the 
see of an archbishop, whb has an annual income of 
860,000 and upwards. The cathedral is a very 
magnificent edifice; the gate is of copper, which was 
cast by a Cholo, and is very massy, and much or- 
namented. There are few churches in the world 
which are larger than this, and 1 imagine, fewer 
that can compare with it in the richness of its orna- 
ments. Its pulpit is of solid silver, as also the 
smaller pulpits, from which the epistle and the mass 
are chanted; its altars and huge chandeliers are also 
of solid silver. The palace of the archbishop is 
a splendid building, with grand saloons and spacious 
gardens with fountains of water; and it is furnished 
in a princely style. There are also in this city five 
convents, three nunneries, an university, two colleges, 
and an academy of lawyers. In the university and 
colleges there are about 500 students, who come from 
all parts of the country. The price of tuition is 8 120 

* The Indian name, in the Quechua language, was Choque- 
Chaka, or bridge of gold. The Indians passed through this 
town, over the Pilcomayo, to the celebrated mines of Porco. 


104 


per annum to each student. I have already stated 
the branches which are taught in those colleges; the 
study of mathematics and the natural sciences were 
prohibited by the Spanish government. In order 
to obtain admission into the law academy, it is neces- 
sary to have taken the degree of doctor or bachelor 
of civil laws in the university, which is obtained by 
undergoing a satisfactory examination in J ustinian’s 
Institutes, and which costs from 6 to $800. 

In the academy is taught the practice of the courts, 
and the regular course is two years; the candidate 
then is strictly examined before the judges, and if 
qualified, is admitted to the bar. This city is the 
seat of the audience, or supreme court of justice, 
whose jurisdiction extends over the whole of Upper 
Peru. There are five judges, including the chief 
justice, who is called regente , and the others oidores 
from the Latin auditor; and an attorney- general, 
who is called Jiscal. The regente has 89000 salary, 
and the others g4000 each. These judges are call- 
ed the ministers of the king; they all come from 
Spain, and are very pompous personages. They are 
clothed with great power, and generally display the 
consciousness of it, in the haughtiness of their de- 
meanor. A few years since a lady of Charcas left 
a sum of money in her will to be appropriated in 
soliciting the king cf Spain to appoint the deity an 
oidor of Charcas. The idea was perhaps impious, 
but it shows with what feelings these persons are 
regarded by the people, and the disgust which their 
manners excite. 


QRURO. 

This city is governed by a municipality indepen- 
dent of the provinces, and is not properly included 


105 


in any of them. It is situated in 17o 58' south lati- 
tude, being 132 miles south-west of the city of La 
Paz, 171 miles north-west of the city of Potosi, and 
150 miles west of the city Cochabamba. It is ad- 
mirably situated for a flourishing inland commerce; 
being 170 miles east of the port of Arica on the 
Pacific Ocean; and the post road from Buenos Ayres 
to Lima, and the road of Despoblado, from Salta 
over the table land of the Cordilleras, pass through 
it. On the east of the city, a distance of about six 
miles, is the river Desaguedero, which connects the 
two lakes of Titicaca and Paria. The city stands 
near the Cordillera of the coast, or western Cor- 
dillera, which is here much broken, and a good 
mule road passes over it to Arica. The town 
is builc at the foot of the mineral mountain of the 
same name. Its figure is a crescent; it is well laid 
out, and its houses are regularly of one story. It 
has five convents. Its markets are well supplied, 
and with fresh fish from theiocean. The population 
is about 15,000; its climate is cold, and it is much 
exposed to the winds which blow from the Cordil- 
lera. The cattle and sheep of the neighbouring dis- 
tricts are very fine, and particularly the latter. Al- 
though the mines are generally poor, yet that of 
Popo (distant from the city 18 miles) previous to 
the revolution, yielded annually 60,000lb. of silver. 
There is a manufactory here of bridle bits, which is 
pretty extensive; the price of iron of which they are 
made is enormous, being sometimes $$0 for 100 
pounds. There is also a manufactory of copper 
ware, and a famous powder manufactory, which is 
supplied with salt petre from the neighbourhood, 
which affords it in great abundance. 

This city is the centre of commerce for all the 
provinces, and during the revolutionary war it has 
constantly been occupied as the principal military 
position of Upper Peru. From it to Lima there is 
a good road, the country being almost a perfect le» 


106 


vel to Vilcanota, a distance of nearly 400 miles, and 
from that place to Lima, although the country is 
more rugged, a fine carriage road by the coast might 
easily be made; but the Spaniards, who are here the 
lords of the soil, from the sluggishness of their ge- 
nius, and their entire destitutibn of public spirit, 
have neglected it; indeed, they have always con- 
ducted in this country, as if they considered them- 
selves mere sojourners in it, and that the period was 
always near, when it would be wrested from them. 
There is not a single work of public improvement 
performed by them, to be found; no public roads, 
no bridges, no establishments of commerce, nor im- 
provements of navigation. In this fine country, where 
nature is never idle, and where the choicest pro- 
ductions of the globe grow almost spontaneously, the 
hand of the Spaniard has never been employed, ex- 
cept in torturing the bowels of the earth for gold, 
to satiate the lust of his avarice, or in oppressing 
the natives of the country, to gratify his pride of 
power. 

Oruro was formerly inhabited by wealthy miners, 
but in the revolution of Tupac Amaru, it suffered 
severely. I particularly refer to the brothers, Ro- 
drigues, natives of the country, who being accused 
by the Spaniards of being implicated in that rebel- 
lion, were arrested, their property confiscated, and 
themselves sent to Buenos Ayres, and thrown into 
a dungeon; and without being proved guilty of any 
offence, or even brought to trial, they suffered a con- 
finement of twenty years, and until their death. 
These men possessed immense riches; on their ar- 
rest by Segurola, the governor of La Paz, there 
were found in their houses great quantities of silver, 
and their store rooms were full of ingots. This 
wealth, the value of which can hardly be estimated, 
was plundered from them in the most barbarous 
manner, and that wretch, Segurola, on his death- 


bed, being tormented by his guilty conscience, de- 
clared who were his accomplices in the infamous 
transaction. This mode of robbing the wealthy Cre- 
oles has not been uncommon in this country. I now 
know men residing in La Paz who have been made 
rich by this species of plunder; and it is well known 
that the discoverer of the mine of Laicacota was 
thrown into prison, and finally put to death by the 
Spaniards, whom he had generously admitted to 
participate in the riches of his mine. 


COCHABAMBA. 

This intendency is bounded on the north by 
Moxos and La Paz; on the west by La Paz and 
Charcas; on the south by Charcas; and on the east 
by Santa Cruz de la Sierra, and Chiquitos. These 
are the general boundaries, but its particular limits 
are well described by the celebrated Prussian na- 
turalist Hsenke. 

The territory of Cochabamba forms an oblong 
tract of land, extending from east to west 520 miles, 
and from north to south 92 miles. 

There is no province in the two Americas which 
nature has defined with such determinate and last- 
ing boundaries as that of Cochabamba. The Rio 
Grande, a noble river, separates it from the districts 
of Chayanta, Yamparaes, and Charcas on the south; 
a chain of mountains situated in the interior, and 
whose summits reach the clouds, constitute a for- 
midable barrier on the north, and separate it from 
the mountains of the Andes. The industry of man 
has with gentle advances, extended the territory of 
this province, and converted what appeared impe- 


108 


netrable forests, into the most beautiful and pro- 
ductive regions of the earth. The Rio Grande and 
the chain of mountains before mentioned, incline a 
little to the north of direct east lines, but their courses 
are always parallel. On the west this intendency is 
bounded by that immense chain of mountains, which 
are sometimes called the Cordilleras of the coast; 
and on the east, it extends to those vast unbroken 
plains which reach almost to the Atlantic ocean. On 
carefully considering the geographical features of 
this territory, it is found to slope off gradually from 
the highest elevations on the west into those unex- 
plored and interminable plains on the east, where 
the empire of the native inhabitants, the Indians and 
wild beasts, has never been disputed. This decli- 
vity forms an inclined plane, whose elevated part is 
the highest point of the Cordilleras, and whose base 
reposes upon the lowest level of the continent. It is 
to this singular and happy position, that Cochabam- 
ba owes its fertility, and, that in so very small a 
portion of the globe, every variety of soil and cli- 
mate in the world is found. On the summits of the 
Cordilleras, an eternal winter reigns, where the 
inhabitants of the remotest regions of Siberia and 
Camschatka, may encounter a climate as unfriendly 
as their own. 

The interior or lower part of the Cordilleras con- 
tains immense quantities of metals, and the declivi- 
ties of the mountains and the plains beneath, abound 
in every kihd of mineral, saline, and vegetable pro- 
duction. The lakes of the country are inexhausti- 
ble fountains of common salt, which is dissolved in 
the rainy season, and crystallized in the dry; which 
process is rapidly carried on in a country of such 
great elevation. In these parts of the countrv are 
found plains covered with mineral alkali, (carbonate 
of soda,) sal admirabile, (sulphate of soda,) and mag- 
nesia vitriolada, (sulphate of magnesia.) Descend- 


109 


mg from these mountains, upon the scattered rocks 
are found vitriol and alum, which are called cachina 
and millo, whose masses are decomposed by the pow- 
erful hand of time. 

Upon the tops of the mountains, which are co- 
vered with snow, where the atmosphere is too rare 
for the respiration of ordinary animals, are found 
the different species of the Peruvian camel, the 
guanaco, the llama, the alpacha, and the vicuna: and 
the w r ool of the latter is esteemed the finest in the 
world. Notwithstanding the extreme barrenness of 
this Cordillera, and its great elevation, nature with 
a bountiful hand, and as if intending that every part 
of this most favoured and interesting province should 
minister to the comforts and necessities of man, has 
spread over its precipices and highest peaks, a mul- 
titude of healing herbs, whose medicinal virtues 
have placed them in the highest rank in the materia 
medica . These are yareta , gentian , and every .spe- 
cies of valerian. Descending the Cordilleras to the 
neighbouring valleys, and the profound ravines, 
there is experienced, within a very limited extent, 
the influence of a climate extremely sweet and be- 
nignant, and which is at the medium temperature 
of the whole globe. It is here that nature has esta- 
blished a just equilibrium between the gradations 
of heat and cold, and which, in proportion to its 
elevation, and its particular formation, has temper- 
ed the intense heat of the torrid zone with the frosts 
of the arctic circle. The mild and cheering tempe- 
rature which in Europe prevails only in the spring, 
is here perpetual, and the variations of the thermo- 
meter between the heat of the rainy seasons and the 
cold of the dry, are so small as scarcely to be per- 
ceptible. This province produces in equal abun- 
dance maize, barley, wheat, vines, the olive, and all 
the fruits of the ancient continent. In the narrow 
defiles, watered by the rapid rivers of the Cordil- 

K 


110 


leras, the refraction of the solar rays augments the 
heat, and the sides are covered with trees, whose 
numbers increase in proportion to their distance 
from the summits of the mountains. The moun- 
tains of the Andes, which are nearest to the elevated 
peaks of the Cordillera of the interior, have other 
modifications of soil and temperature, which are pe- 
culiar to Upper Peru. Trees and plants innumera- 
ble cover the soil with prodigious abundance, and 
fill the atmosphere with a salubrity and fragrance be- 
yond any other region in the world. In this place, 
properly speaking, the temperature of the torrid 
zone commences. The fecundity of nature is here 
displayed in all its richness and beauty; all the ani- 
mals, and vegetables of every variety and class, at- 
tract here the curiosity of the philosopher; ana their 
number and beauty transcend the powers of imagi- 
nation. 

A considerable but uniform degree of heat, and 
a constant but agreeable moisture in the atmosphere, 
produce an equanimity of temper and of feeling, to 
which the people of variable climates are strangers, 
and which cannot be sufficiently appreciated. '1 his 
fertile soil produces the palm, the pine, or anana, 
the banana, so various in its species, cotton Peru- 
vian bark, and cocoa. 

The union of the streams which take their rise 
in this chain of mountains, forms the immense river 
of the Amazons, and at the foot of the smallest chain 
commence those vast plains extending towards the 
east, whose limits have never been explored. 

Such are the varieties of soil and climate in the 
province of Cochabamba, and from which its fer- 
tility and the multitude of its productions may 
easily be imagined. In this little work, the result of 
long and painful excursions, I have endeavoured to 
display, with all the order and method of which I 
am capable, the most interesting of its productions; 


Ill 


they are worthy in all respects of the attention of 
the government, which in time will reap the great- 
est advantages, if it will patronise the exploration of 
it, since its productions are the most important ma- 
terials — the elements and foundation of manufac- 
tures and the arts, and of all the objects of industry. 
The above are the observations, in substance, of 
Mons. Hsenke. 

The word Cochabamba, in the Quechua dialect, 
means rich grass, and the territory is aptly named. 
This intendency contains no provinces, and has no 
tributary Indians. Its population is about 115,000. 

In descending from the cold and lofty plains of 
Oruro, the green verdure begins to appear when 
you enter the vale of Arque, where is experienced 
an atmosphere which is loaded with fragrance; and 
in passing through this valley you meet with a clus- 
ter of cottages and flour mills, embosomed among 
the most beautiful fruit and forest trees. At a dis- 
tance of thirty miles from Arque stands the city of 
Oropesa, or Cochabamba, (S. lat. 18° 31'.) the ca- 
pital of the intendency. It is situated in a beautiful 
plain near the river Sacabo. The roads leading into 
the city are planted with lofty forest trees, resem- 
bling the finest avenues of Versailles. The city is 
square, and the streets, which are spacious, cross 
each other at right angles. It contains five convents 
and two nunneries; the former have extensive gar- 
dens, which are well cultivated, and the fruit or- 
chards abound with fine fruit. The population of 
the city is about 25,000. 

The inhabitants of this intendency consist princi- 
pally of Mestizos and Cholos, and they are stri- 
kingly different from the population of the other 
provinces, being fairer and taller, and generally bet- 
ter made. The fairness of their complexion is cer- 
tainly a phenomenon, the cause of which I cannot 
explain. They are industrious farmers, skilful me- 


112 


chanics, and possessed of superior intelligence to 
their neighbours; and during the bloody scenes of 
the present revolution, they have distinguished them- 
selves as intrepid soldiers. 

The eastern section of the intendency is called 
Valle Grande, which is a most productive district. 
The inhabitants are almost all farmers, who raise 
great quantities of wheat, which is sent to the mar- 
kets of La Paz and Potosi, and the other cold coun- 
tries; and cotton also is cultivated in great abun- 
danee, which is declared to be of a very superior 
quality. They cultivate flax also in great quanti- 
ties, but make no other use of it, except to extract 
the oil from the seed. This oil is a great article of 
consumption in the churches, being used to supply 
the lamps, which in those holy places are kept con- 
stantly burning. The farmers of this intendency rear 
a breed of horses equal in beauty and strength to 
the famous Chilian horses, and also vast numbers 
of asses. The products of this country are carried 
to market on the backs of asses; they have no other 
means of transportation, carriages being entirely un- 
known. Great numbers of asses are employed in 
this business; they are loaded with huge panniers 
or baskets, into which the goods are put, and they 
are then turned loose in the street, and driven along 
in caravans of 2 or 300. In this way are carried to 
La Paz, a distance of 240 miles, in great abun- 
dance, fowls, turkeys, bread, pastry, sweetmeats, 
and even eggs. 

After the farmers, the next principal class of the 
population are manufacturers. Of the cotton, there 
were manufactured into cloth, in the city of Orope- 
sa, in 1799, 1 ,500,000lbs. which was all consumed 
in the country, and which sells at the rate of from 
4 to 10 shillings per yard Since that year, the quan- 
tity has considerably increased, and in the late Eu- 
ropean wars Cochabamba and Cuzco supplied the 


113 


whole country with manufactured goods. There are 
manufactories of glass bottles on the Rio Grande, 
and of earthen ware, which are rude and coarse in- 
deed, but which are carried on to a considerable ex- 
tent. They have also manufactories of glue, and 
they are acquainted with the art of dyeing. During 
the revolution, they supplied themselves with mus- 
kets of their own manufacture, made from a com- 
position of copper and lead. They have some ma- 
chinery, but all of their own invention. 

There is but one mine here, which is that of 
Choque-camata , or bed of gold , which was formerly 
rich, but has been abandoned. 

The people of this country rarely ride; indeed 
they are so much accustomed to walking, that it is 
reported of one, who having mounted an ass, and 
undertaking to count the number of his drove, for- 
got to reckon that on which he was seated, and sup- 
posed he had lost one. 

The fruits of Cochabamba and Urubamba in Cuz- 
co, are certainly the finest in the world. Of peaches 
they have 10 or 12 different species: some so deli- 
cate, that they will not bear transportation; they are 
like a syrup in the mouth, and possess a delicious- 
ness of flavour, which I shall not attempt to de- 
scribe. Sweet and sour oranges, wild and cultivated, 
are found throughout the whole country, on the 
east of the Cordilleras, from Cochabamba to Lima; 
also, pine apples, bananas, lemons, pears, apples, 
plums, figs, grapes, olives, and in short, all the fruits 
of the old and new continent. Oranges are produc- 
ed all the year round, the same tree exhibiting at 
the same time, flowers and ripe fruit. There are 
also great varieties of fruits peculiar to the country; 
chirimoyas, which are exquisitely delicious, bananas y 
granadillas , pacays , &c. The trees which bear the 
chirimoya , are of the size of the apple tree, and the 
blossoms are wonderfully fragrant. 

k 2 


114 


Besides the fruits of this district, there are in- 
numerable flowering shrubs, which perfume the at- 
mosphere; and great varieties of garden stuffs, kitch- 
en vegetables, &c. 

I shall be more minute in my description of the 
productions of this and the other provinces, after 
I have concluded my geographical survey of the 
country. 


LA PAZ. 

This intendency is bounded on the north by the 
country of the Amazons, and the intendency of 
Cuzco in Low Peru; on the west by those of Puno, 
or Chuciuto, and Arequipa; on the south by Potosi 
and Charcas, aud on the east by Cochabamba and 
Moxos. Its population is about 1 10,000, without in- 
cluding Indians. The western section of this inten- 
dency is an extensive plain bordering on the eastern 
shore of the great lake Titicaca. The climate is cold, 
on account of its proximity to the Cordilleras, and 
its productions are principall) potatoes and barley. 
The eastern part includes the eastern Cordillera, 
and its declivities, together with those fertile plains 
which extend towards Moxos and Cochabamba. Of 
this Cordillera, the highest peaks are those of An- 
como, or hoary head, in the north, and Ilimani in 
the south, distant about 100 miles from each other. 
The figure of Ilimani is pyramidal, resembling in 
many points the famous peak of Chimborazo, and 
it probably belongs to the same chain of mountains. 
Its top, in the dry season, is visible a distance of 
150 miles: in the rainy season it is enveloped in 
clouds. The appearance of these mountains is won- 


derfully grand, and particularly when seen in the 
night time from the city of La Paz, situated in the 
valleys below, at a distance of thirty miles. You 
behold a lofty barrier of mountains, stretching from 
north to south, with almost an uniform elevation, as 
far as the eye can reach, with summits crowned with 
perpetual snows the whole extent, except at the pass 
of Chulumani: and the sublimity of the view is sof- 
tened into beauty, when you contrast their hoary 
summits with the green verdure of the forests on 
their eastern declivities, and the fertile valleys at 
their base. * 

The two points of Ilimani and Ancoma on the 
east, from the source of the river Beni, one of the 
branches of the Amazon; on the west their waters 
run into the lake Titicaca. 

This intendency is divided into six lesser pro- 
vinces or sub delegations, to wit, Cica Cica, Pa- 
cages, Omazuegos, Larecaja, Apolobamba, and 
Chulumani. Of these provinces the three first are 
situated on the west, and are cold and unproduc- 
tive, but abundant in metals. 

The province of Cica-Cica has its chief town of 
the same name. It is bounded on the west by the 
coast of Arica, and extends 75 miles from north to 
south, and 120 miles from east to west. Its popu- 
lation is about 25,000. This province is laid down 
erroneously in all the maps. There are here rich 
silver mines, and in the village of Avoayo there is 
a salt spring, from which are produced vast quan- 
tities of salt, and of the finest quality. 

The province of Pacages lies north west of Cica- 
Cica; its chief town is Caquiavire. Its extent from 
east to west is 168 miles, and from north to south 
120 miles. It is separated from the coast of Arica 
by the western Cordillera. There are in this pro- 
vince 70 mines of silver which are worked; there is 
also a mine of emeralds. In the village of Be- 


116 


renguela there is a quarry of fine alabaster, which 
is beautifully transparent. It is frequently used for 
window lights, and particularly in the churches; and 
splendid jet d’eaux were constructed of it by the 
Jesuits of La Paz; and the upright pipes are so 
transparent as to exhibit the water as it ascends 
through them. Talc is also found here in abun- 
dance. 

In the village of Tiaguanaco are situated the ruins 
of a palace of the Incas, which are now little more 
than huge stones piled one upon another. 

The province of Omazuegos is bounded by La- 
recaja on the north-west, by Chucuito on the west, 
by Pacages on the south, and by the Cordillera on 
the east. It extends 120 miles from north to south, 
and from 48 to 60 miles from east to west; the chief 
town is Hachacache, 54 miles north-west of La Paz. 
Near this place is a famous wall of stone, which ex- 
tends from the top of the Cordillera to the shore of 
the lake Titicaca, a distance of about 30 miles; com- 
mencing at the verge of the snows on the mountain, 
and losing itself in the lake. It was, no doubt, a 
work of the Incas; but its object has never been ex- 
plained. Its height at present is uniformly about 
four feet; it has suffered very little injury from lime. 
About 8 miles south of this wall are situated a clus- 
ter of Indian cottages, which must have been erect- 
ed also in the times of the Incas. They are con- 
structed of stones, neatly fitted together, and the 
doors, or entrances, are observed to be remarkably 
small. There are some buildings among them which 
are higher than the rest: perhaps 40 feet high and 
which resemble towers. These are not built of 
stone, but of a kind of cement, the composition of 
which is not known, and upon which the operations 
of the element have made no impression. They are 
round, without doors, and are supposed to have 
been tombs. These monuments of the Incas are as 


117 


mdistructible as those of the ancient Romans, and 
are constructed after their fashion. 

In this province is situated the village of Capa- 
cavana, which is a consecrated place; where the de- 
vout catholics, even from Lima and Salta, resort to 
pay their worship to the virgin Capacavana . The 
church is fine, and constructed of stone, according 
to the regular rules of architecture. The riches of 
the church it is impossible to calculate. It has a 
chandelier of silver, with 365 branches, one for 
every day of the year. The virgin is placed on a 
wheel, which turns round to present her divine 
countenance to every part of the church. She is 
covered with diamonds, pearls, and precious stones, 
and every sort of rich jewelry, which is accumula- 
ted by the donations of the devotees. All this wealth 
is shamefully dissipated by the monks of St. Au- 
gustine, who have the custody of the virgin, and 
who have a convent in the place. This situation is 
much sought for by the ecclesiastics all over the 
country, as it affords them a fine opportunity for 
thieving. 

In this province there are several mines of silver; 
also of quicksilver, in a mountain called Coabilque, 
near the Estancia de Carbiza. This mine, when it 
was first opened, afforded great quantities of quick- 
silver, but it awakened the narrow jealousy of the 
vice-royalty of Lima, within which it was then inclu- 
ded, and the working of it was prohibited, in order 
that the government might enjoy the monopoly of 
the mine' of Huancavelica, In Spanish America the 
court of Madrid reserves to itself the exclusive right 
of selling mercury to the miners, and the quantity 
of silver produced depends very much upon the 
quantity and price of this article. In several other 
parts of this province, in Pucurani and Guarina, 
quicksilver has been found. The bottom of the moun- 
tains in this province is full of siver mines, but one 
only is worked. 


118 


The great lake Titicaca is situated on the west of 
this province. It lies 30 miles west of the city of 
La Paz, and the intervening country is a level plain. 
This lake is about 240 miles in circumference; its 
medium width is about 30 miles, and its principal 
direction is north-west and south-east. It contains 
several beautiful islands, which are fertile, produc- 
ing corn, barley, potatoes, &c. 

The north part of the lake is mild and temperate, 
and Orurillo, and other villages, on the northern 
extremity exhibit some lofty trees, and considerable 
vegetation. The shores of the lake are fertile, ex- 
cept in the immediate vicinity of the Cordilleras, 
where the climate is cold, and the soil comparative- 
ly unproductive. The temperature depends alto- 
gether upon the proximity of the snowy mountains. 
On leaving the base of the mountains, you find a 
sensible increase of heat, in travelling even three 
miles. The borders of the lake are beautifully pic- 
turesque, and covered with villages and cultivated 
fields. 

This lake abounds with fine fish, particularly the 
Bogelia , and on its shores and islands are found 
great numbers of water fowl of various species. 

Nature has pointed out this great body of water 
as the channel of an extensive commerce among the 
interior provinces, and between them and the ocean, 
but it has been neglected. From the western shores 
of this lake to Arequipa it is 75 miles, and from 
that city f to the ocean 60 miles; making the whole 
distance to the ocean 135 miles; and although there 
is nothing but a mule road at present, it might easily 
be made into a good carriage road, as the Cordil- 
lera here is much broken. The mode of transporta- 
tion is altogether on the backs of mules: these animals 
attain an extraordinary size on the coast, and they 
will carry 400 weight each, travelling unshod over 


119 


the rough roads, with great expedition, and without 
stopping to feed, for a distance of 36 miles. 

At present the lake is not at all navigated, except 
by the Indians in their canoes for the purpose of 
fishing. On the south, it has, as I have before sta- 
ted, the outlet of the river Desaguadero, which 
empties into the lake of Paria, within 130 miles of 
Potosi. The lake of Titicaca and this river, together, 
afford navigable waters for a distance of 262 miles, 
and they lie directly in the route from Buenos 
Ayres, by Potosi, to Lima and the Pacific ocean; 
and at the distance of 40 miles up the river from 
Paria, stands the city of Oruro, the center of the 
inland commerce of the Provinces. 

The province of Larecaja is situated north of the 
city of La Paz. It extends from east to west 354 
miles, and from north to south 90 miles. This pro- 
vince begins at Ancoma, the north peak of the 
Cordilleras, and extends north to the province of 
Carabaya in Low Peru. It is very irregular and 
mountainous, full of impetuous rivers which form 
the source of the river Beni, one of the principal 
branches of the Amazon. Its chief town is Zo- 
rata, situated at the bottom of the Cordilleras, and 
which contains 10 or 12,000 white inhabitants, who 
are principallv engaged in working the gold mines 
of the province. The whole province contains 32 
small towns or villages; the climate is varied, ac- 
cording to the elevation of the mountains, but is 
generally temperate; the rivers are uncommonly 
rapid and boisterous in their course, and full of 
cataracts. The ridges of the mountains as you go 
north from Ancoma, are full of mines of gold, and 
in the villages of Ananea and Yani there are rich 
mines which are worked. It is a remarkable fact 
in the geological history of this territory, that the 
gold mines commence at Ancoma (lat. 15° S.) and 
only occur as you travel north and east; while to- 


120 


wards the south is situated the region of silver. 
The peak of Ancoma, like the equator, divides this 
metallic region into two hemispheres, that of gold 
on the north and silver on the south. 

The gold in the mines is found embedded in 
white and blue quartz, and frequently combined 
with other metals. It is frequently found united 
with silver, and the miners do not understand the 
mode of separating them. The price of this gold 
is less than that obtained by the washings, and com- 
monly varies from 12 to SI 4 per ounce. 

The mode of separating the gold is very similar 
to that employed at Potosi, in extracting the silver 
from its ores; but the operation is much more rude 
and slovenly. The ores are in the first place bro- 
ken into small pieces, and then ground to a powder, 
which is mixed with quicksilver until it forms an 
amalgam, and the quicksilver is then evaporated, 
leaving the metal, which is cast into ingots. 

In this province, and the neighbouring province 
of Carabaya, in Low Peru, are the famous rivers 
where the pure washed gold is found, and of which 
I shall particularly speak. 

In crossing the Cordilleras to the east, at the 
distance of 36 miles from Ancoma, you meet with 
the source of the river Tipuani, which afterwards 
takes the name of Beni. This river pours down 
from the Cordilleras like a torrent, and flows with 
an impetuous and roaring current the distance of 
120 miles, through the narrow defiles of the moun- 
tains, in a northwardly direction, to the village of 
Tipuani. In descending from the Cordilleras the 
distance of 20 miles, you enter a region where trees 
and vegetation begin to appear; and as you proceed 
northward you find a country covered with thick 
forests, wild barley, bananas, sugar canes-, and all 
the various productions of the Amazons; with birds 
of every variety of plumage, and innumerable mon- 


121 


keys. The roads here are extremely rough, and 
impassable except on foot, or on the backs of mules. 

On the banks of the river Tipuani are found 
abundance of gold in the most extraordinary man- 
ner, and in wonderful purity, it being 23^ carats, 
1| carat finer than the standard of the United States 
coin. The gold is commonly found in little grains 
of the size of barley corns, but sometimes in large 
lumps. The miner sinks a large shaft, close by the 
edge of the river, and until he meets with a pan 
of slate, which is called Penna ; the water is then 
taken out by the Indians with buckets, one stand- 
ing above another. This is a most tedious and ex- 
pensive operation, and frequently occupies two or 
three months of the dry season. The Indians re- 
ceive for this service six shillings a day, and there 
are frequently 200 employed in one mine. After 
the water is thrown out, galleries are dug in differ- 
ent directions, according to the course of the metal; 
and in these the gold is. found, mixed with a hard 
blue clay, which is all taken out together. The gold 
is found every where on the banks of the river; I 
have frequently seen the experiment tried, and never 
knew it fail. This gold and clay together are put 
into a canal constructed with slate, and whose bot- 
tom is an inclined plane, into which a current of 
water is introduced, which washes away the clay 
and earthy particles, and leaves the heaviest parti- 
cles of the gold behind, which are collected and put 
into sacks, and carried to La Paz, where they are 
cast into plates or ingots of 4-lbs. each, and which 
are worih Si, 000. The light grains are washed 
away' by the water, and are afterwards picked up 
by the poor people, who sometimes employ quick- 
silver for the purpose. The workmen employed in 
the mines depend more upon their opportunities for 
thieving than upon their regular wages as a com- 
pensation for their services. They have a dexter* 

L 


12 2 


ous mode of throwing bits of gold into their mouths 
as they pick them up, in which way they collect a 
good deal of gold, in spite of the vigilance of the 
overseers, of whom there is one appointed over 
every 50 workmen. 

When the banks of the river are very high, ca- 
nals are dug to drain off the water, and rocks are 
sometimes found upon the surface of the ground, 
which are removed by blasting with powder, and 
which is a very expensive operation. 

Provisions in Tipuani are very dear, being brought 
a distance of 2 or 300 miles; there is no agricultu- 
ral industrv carried on here, although the country 
is the most fertile in the world. Brandy is much 
drank; it is an article of prime necessity among the 
miners, and is sold at a very high price. 

In conducting these lavaderos or washings, every 
operation is carried on in the most expensive, rude, 
and slovenly manner, and machinery is entirely un- 
known. The expenses of working a mine are fre- 
quently Si 4,000 in three months, and when we add 
to this the quantities of gold w'hich are pilfered by 
the workmen, it is evident that the mines could 
never be worked with profit unless the product was 
very large. According to the official reports of the 
Balanzario at La Paz, where the gold is registered, 
the annual product from this river is 35,200 ounces; 
this does not include the quantity appropriated to 
private ornaments, nor that which is not registered 
by the proprietors, or which is pilfered by the work- 
men. In the neighbouring province of Carabaya, 
in which the river is of the same character, and the 
gold of the same carats, the amount which has been 
registered, according to Alcedo, is 833,000,000. 
This gold is never sold for less than 816 an ounce. 

These mines were worked in the times of the 
Incas, who appear to have been well acquainted 
with the richest mines in the country. There are 


frequently found near these mines, tools of copper 
and tin, which belonged to them. Their routes from 
the mines were straight across the mountains to 
their capital. 

The miners here, like all others, have their alter- 
nations of wealth and poverty. They are frequently 
extremely rich. There were, a few years since, two 
Portuguese, named Suares, who opened a mine 
which yielded them vast quantities of gold. They 
had many boxes filled with this precious metal stored 
away in their houses. They fell in the revolution 
of Tupac Amaru, and all their gold was dissipated; 
but after the troubles were over, the Indians re- 
turned to their sons &60,000 a piece, which had 
been saved. 

The gold is conveyed from Tipuani in sacks of 
skin, which are carried to La Paz on the backs of 
Indians, and with perfect security from robbery, 
through the thick forests; the usual load for an In- 
dian carrier is 5 arobas, (125 lbs.) 

The rivers Cballana, Suches, and Vilaque, which 
rise in the same chain of mountains, unite at Tipu- 
ani, and form the great river Beni. There are also 
lavaderos , or gold washings, on these rivers, where 
the metal is found in abundance. 

The town of Tipuani is situated on the northern 
extremity of this province, and here the river, as it 
assumes the name of Beni, loses its rapid course, 
and flows with a smooth and even current towards 
the east. Here the river is more than a mile wide, 
with sufficient depth of water to float vessels of con- 
siderable burthen. The Indians come to this town 
in their canoes, carrying 20 or 30 Indians, from the 
country of Moxos, and the establishments of the 
Missions, three or four hundred miles down the 
river. 1 here is no doubt that from the town of 
Tipuani, the river of Beni, and the Amazon, with 
which it unites, are navigable to the Atlantic Ocean. 


124 . 


In the revolution of Tupac Amaru, Estrada, a citi- 
zen of Zorata, fled from the country, and went 
down this river in a canoe to Reyes, a village of 
reduced Indians, where he got on board of a Por- 
tuguese vessel, and went to Spain, carrying with 
him immense treasures. 

AtTipuani the country becomes level, and stretch- 
es off towards the north and east, into expanded 
plains covered with forests, and exhibiting gentle 
undulations of hills clothed in luxuriant vegetation. 
From the top of the mountain of Silla, near Tipu- 
ani, the view is entirely open towards the north and 
east. I do not imagine that a finer country can be 
presented to the human eye; and when we consider 
that in the neighbourhood are mines of gold, the 
richness of which has never been explored; that 
here are groves of costly woods, and forests of the 
finest timber trees, with a soil of great fertility, and 
capable of producing all the various productions of 
the cast, not excepting the cinnamon and spices of 
the Indian Isles, and that all these things are seated 
at the head, and on the borders of waters navigable 
to the Atlantic Ocean, we must be satisfied that the 
brightest visions of fancy can scarcely portray the 
future riches of this favoured country; its import- 
ance to the commerce of the United States; the 
changes which will be wrought by its independence 
in the political economy of nations; — in short, the 
floods' of wealth which v\ ill roll down the broad 
bosom of the Amazon and its tributary streams, to 
enrich the world! 

The Indians who resort to Tipuani are those of 
Reyes, Mapiri, and Lecos, villages recently reduced 
by the friars of St. Augustine. These people are 
much fairer than the other natives of this country, 
are neat in their apparel, and cleanly in their per- 
sons, using frequent ablutions. They have manu- 
factories of curious fabrics made of the bark of a 


125 


tree common in the country, probably the paper 
mulberry. The bark is pounded tine, dissolved in 
water, and sized with some resins of the country, 
and is then made into a fabric resembling coarse 
paper, and which is made in a similar manner. This 
fabric is used for the various purposes of clothing. 
They also manufacture a stuff of the wild cotton, 
which is produced in abundance in their forests. 
Another kind is made of the plumage of beautiful 
birds, interwoven with twine. They also make a 
species of tapestry, not unlike the hangings of the 
parliament house of Great Britain, and in which is 
wove the figures of men and animals. Also combs 
of curious workmanship, of a kind of wood called 
chonta, which resembles ebony. Their skill in ar- 
chery is truly surprising. 1 have seen them play 
with an orange, tossing it into the air, and hitting it 
with their arrows, and keeping it from the ground, 
for an hour together. They will hit a bird on the 
wing at a considerable distance, and with unerring 
certainty. Their arrows are tipped with the chonta 
wood, and in war are poisoned. These Indians are 
very fond of iron instruments, anil will barter their 
beautiful fabrics for tools of any kind. Their cha- 
racter is generally mild and peaceable; they are en- 
tirely under the subjection of their friars. In the 
north part of this province are situated the villages 
of Consata and Charasani, inhabited by the famous 
pedestrians, of whom I have before spoken. 

The province of Apolobamba is situated north 
of that ot Larecaja, following the range of the Cor- 
dilleras. It is 240 miles from north to south, and 
120 miles from east to west. This province is ex- 
tremely rude and mountainous on the west; on the 
east it slopes off into extensive plains to the river 
Tuychi. Its population amounts to 30,000, and con- 
sists principally of civilized Indians. There are a 
few Spaniards and Creoles, who are proprietors of 
L 2 


126 


large plantations. It contains eight small towns or 
villages, and its chief town is St. Antonio de Aten. 
The north-eastern part of this province borders on 
the country of the Amazons. 

In this province there is an extensive cultivation 
of cocoa, which is equal to that of Sochonosco in 
Mexico, which is esteemed the best in the world. 
It is an article of great consumption among the 
people of this country; its price is Si a pound. Rice, 
cotton, wax, &c. are produced in abundance. 

The province of Chulumani is situated east of 
the city of La Paz. It extends 150 miles from 
north to south, and 90 miles from east to west. It 
contains twenty small towns. Its chief town is 
Coroyco, situated on the east of the Cordillera. In 
this province are the haciendas y or plantations of 
coca, by which the whole country is supplied with 
this article. It is the tobacco of the Indians, used 
universally by them, but never by the whites. It is 
the leaf of a small tree, which is chewed. They 
are plucked in May and November, and sometimes 
three times a year, dried in the sun, then tied up in 
bundles of 22lbs. each, pressed, steeped in lye, and 
sent into the market for use. A bundle is worth 
from 8 to Si 2. Its sales amount at least to §4,0o0,000 
annually at La Paz, and it constitutes a great branch 
of the trade of this city. Its taste is bitter; it is 
warming to the stomach, and a sudorifick to those 
who are not accustomed to it. It is an article of 
the first necessity to the Indian; he cannot labour 
without it, and prefers it to his food. Coffee is pro- 
duced here, which is occasionally drank, but not so 
abundantly as chocolate, which is the universal 
morning beverage of the country. There are some 
vineyards here, but not very extensive. T his pro- 
vince being almost exclusively devoted to coca, the 
provisions are brought from the neighbouring coun- 
tries. 


127 


The city of La Paz, the capital of the Intenden- 
cy, is situated in latitude 16 ° 30 south, 180 miles 
east of the Pacific coast. It was founded by the 
licentiate Gasca, after the battle of Guarina, at the 
period of the conquest. It stands on the site of an 
ancient Indian village, called in the Ayrnara dialect, 
Choka-Tapoo , meaningyar/n of potatoes, and not of 
gold , as some historians have asserted. The Ay- 
mara language was only spoken in this section of 
the country, an ignorance of which fact has led the 
celebrated Humboldt into an error when he says, 
w That from the plain of Tiahuanaco, situated be- 
tween the cities of Cuzco and La Paz, descended 
numerous and powerful tribes, who carried their 
arms, language , and arts even to the northern hemi- 
sphere.” And besides, the most fertile countries 
are not in the north, but in the south: to wit, Co- 
chabamba, Tucuman, and Chili. 

This citv is sometimes known in that country 
under the name of Chookeago. It is situated in a 
hollow, considerably below the elevation of the 
plains which extend from the Cordilleras to the lake. 
You approach the town by a gradual descent of 
three miles, and the wholt city stands before you, 
appearing u one red,” the roofs of the houses being 
covered with red tile, l he city is divided by the 
river Chookeago, which, rising in the Cordilleras, 
takes a southerly direction, bending round the base 
of Ilimani, and then runs north, until it unites with 
the Tipuani. In the city there are four stone bridges 
across the river. The streets are rectangular, paved, 
and of convenient width. The dwelling houses are 
principally built of stone, of two and three stories 
high; and many of them exhibit much taste and 
elegance in their structure. In the public square, 
there are some splendid edifices, and in the centre 
of the square stands a fountain ol water construct- 
ed of transparent alabastejf; and indeed there are 


125 


fountains at the corners of almost every street. 
There are five convents, three nunneries, and five 
parochial churches, and these convents and nunne- 
ries are extremely rich. In the nunnery of Con- 
cebidas, there is a figure of the sun, for exhibiting 
the host, made of gold and diamonds, and standing 
on a pedestal of solid gold of a yard and a half 
high. The rays of the sun are gold studded with 
brilliants. The cathedral is full of silver; the front 
of the altar even to the roof, is covered with this 
precious metal. The cups of the sacrament are of 
pure gold. The bells of the church are large; for 
ringing them at funerals, a duty is paid, which is 
glOO when the great bell of the cathedral is tolled. 

The literary institutions consist of one poor col- 
lege; but what I must not omit — for it is creditable 
to the humanity and intelligence of ihe citizens — is 
an alms house, where the poor are entertained. In 
traversing the streets, you as rarely meet a beggar 
as in the city of New York. This is the only in- 
stitution of the kind to be found in South America. 

The climate of La Paz is cold, although it is 
mild at a little distance from the city, as you recede 
from the Cordilleras. The city stands at the base 
of the lofty peak of Ilimani, which almost overlooks 
it, and whose snowy summit and verdant sides ex- 
hibit a fine view. This mountain seems obnoxious 
to thunder storms, which are frequent on its aerial 
top, and which at times greatly enhance its native 
sublimity. The plains surrounding the city are 
■clothed in perpetual verdure, and are very fertile, 
supplying the city with potatoes, barley and vege- 
tables. The markets of this city are reckoned the 
best in Upper Peru; the supply of fresh fish from 
the lake and the ocean, is constant and abundant; 
fruits are plenty at all seasons of the year: wines 
and brandies are supplied in abundance from the 
Pacific coast, sugar from Cuzco, and wheat from 


129 


Cochabamba. At a distance of 20 or 30 miles be- 
low the city, on the banks of the river, are some 
flourishing vineyards, producing red and white 
grapes, from which considerable quantities of wine 
are made. There is a great scarcity of fuel here; 
that which is used is charcoal, and not unfrequently 
the excrement of animals. It was one mile from 
this city that a mass of pure gold was found by an 
Indian as he was bathing in the river, which was 
valued at gll,*69. It was purchased by the vice- 
roy Castelfuerte, and sent as a present to his sove- 
reign. 

The population of this city is about 40,000. In 
the rebellion of Tupac Amaru it suffered severely, 
but having recovered its ancient prosperity, its situa- 
tion was such as I have described it in 1808. It 
was in this city that the fire of the revolution first 
burst forth, and here it has burned the brightest. 
Inhabited by a brave and high spirited people, many 
possessing splendid fortunes, and some of noble 
blood, it has been the scene of the most fearful and 
desperate struggles for independence. The hurri- 
cane of war, at one period, swept its population into 
the desert, where they fell either by famine or the 
sword. At another time, their wells of water were 
poisoned by infernal conspirators, and a barrack of 
patriot soldiers was treacherously blown up, and 
300 men perished. It was this devoted town that 
the monster, Goyetieche, converted into a human 
slaughter house, butchering the miserable inhabi- 
tants with, his own hands. Unhappy city of my 
birth! the period of thy sufferings is hastening to a 
close; already the thunder of war is dying away in 
the distance; brighter days begin to dawn upon thee, 
and soon shall thy deserted streets resound with the 
enlivening hum of business; and from the ashes of 
thy slaughtered heroes, there shall arise a people to 


130 


emulate their virtues, and to restore to thee more 
than all thy ancient splendour! 


SANTA CRUZ DE LA SIERRA, OR PUNO. 

This intendency is bounded on the north by 
Chiquitos and Moxos; on the west by Charcas and 
Cochabamba; on the south by the Chiriguanos and 
other tribes of Indians, and on the east by Chiqui- 
tos. The population is 100,000. It is divided into 
two departments, Misque and Santa Cruz, from 
which the intendency takes its name. 

The department of Misque is bounded by the 
Cordilleras on the north, by Cochabamba on the 
west, by charcas on the south-west and south, and 
by Santa Cruz on the east. Its climate is warm. 
The chief town, which is of the same name, stands 
in a fine valley of eight leagues in circumference, 
and its population amounts to 12000. This is an 
extremely fertile province, producing in great abun- 
dance, corn, sugar, grapes, bees-wax, and honey. 
Within this province is situated the lake of Xaraes, 
which is of considerable magnitude, and well stored 
with fish. Misque in former times was a town of 
some importance, but it has latterly fallen into 
decay: there being no mines in its neighbourhood, 
many of its inhabitants have removed to other 
places. 

The province of Santa Cruz is situated east of 
Misque. The chief town, which is of the same 
name, and is the capital of the intendency, was 
founded by Chaves, one of the companions of Pi- 
zarro in 1560, in latitude 18° 4' south, but was af- 
terwards, in 1575, removed to its present position 


131 


in latitude 17o 49' 44" south, and 66o 24' west 
longitude from Paris, at the foot of a small range 
of mountains, on the north of the intendency. Some 
of the inhabitants of the former town did not ac- 
company the others in the removal, but constructed 
a barque, in which they sailed down the river Ma- 
nure, and thence into the Amazon, and finally ar- 
rived at Cadiz. 

The productions of this province are the same 
as those of Misque, but the culture of them has 
been neglected. There are no mines in the pro- 
vince. 


MOXOS AND CHIQUITOS, 

These provinces, which were established by the 
Jesuits, have been, since their expulsion, subjected 
to a military government. Moxos was conquered 
from savage tribes by the Incas, and made part of 
their great empire. It extends from north to south 
360 miles, and nearly the same distance from east 
to west. It is bounded by the country of the Ama- 
zons on the north, by Cochabamba and La Paz on 
the west, by Chiquitos on the south, and on the east 
by the dominions of Brazil. This province is wa- 
tered by three rivers, Beni, Mamore, and Santa 
Cruz, which take their rise in the eastern Cordillera, 
and flow into the Amazon. 

There are in this province 15 villages, which are 
situated on the banks of the above mentioned rivers, 
and are regularly laid out. The houses are of wood. 
The population of the province is 22,000. 

Chiquitos is separated from Moxos, on the north 
by the mountains of Tapacares: on the west it is 


132 


bounded by Santa Cruz de la Sierra, on the north 
by the forests of Zamucas, and on the east by sa- 
vage Indians. It contains 10 villages, and has a 
population of about 20,000. 

The two provinces of Moxos and Chiquitos ex- 
tend from 14° to 20° south latitude, embracing a 
fine and fertile tract of country. In the province 
of Chiquitos there is a beautiful valley of 120 miles 
in extent. In almost every village, there re 
churches of regular architecture, richly decorated, 
and what is particularly worthy of mention, are 
the choirs of musical instruments in every church, 
such as organs, harps, violins, and which are played 
with admirable skill by the Indians, who are care- 
fully taught sacred music by the friars. 

In these Indian villages or missions, there are 
manufactories of superior cotton fabrics, such as 
calicoes, diapers, and a stuff resembling merseilles. 
The Indians are excellent cabinet-makers, making 
beautiful furniture out of the fine woods which are 
abundant in the country They cultivate cocoa and 
coffee; make great quantities of white and yellow 
wax, which is an article of great demand for the 
churches. The king and the priests have all the 
profits of their industry: the government has a fac- 
tory in the country, where all the manufactured 
goods and the products of the soil are collected, and 
from whence they are sent to Charcas and other 
markets to be sold. 

The climate of these provinces is like that of the 
East Indies, with half-yearly alternations of rainy 
and dry weather, and the productions are similar. 
Cinnamon is produced in abundance and when cul- 
tivated, is not inferior to that of Ceylon. The for- 
ests are full of balsamic, resinous, and odoriferous 
trees. Here are found Peruvian bark, vainilla, gin- 
ger, gum copal, and all sorts of resins and healing 
balsams. The forests of these provinces, and all 


133 


that is called Montana real , are the finest botanic 
gardens in the world. Birds are found of almost 
every variety, and of the most beautiful plumage: 
there being no unkind winter here to destroy them, 
or drive them into warmer latitudes. There are 
some beasts of prey, and snakes which are poison- 
ous. The rivers and lakes abound with fish. Honey 
is collected in great quantities in the forests; and in 
the north part of Moxos, there is found the silk 
worm, hut it is not cultivated; the mulberry, upon 
which it feeds, is a common tree of the country. 

In short, throughout the whole range of these 
provinces, there is found all the variety of animal 
and vegetable productions, which are peculiar to the 
torrid zone in any region of the globe. Indeed, 
it is a sufficient eulogium upon the climate and the 
soil of these provinces, that they were selected by 
the Jesuits for the establishment of their missions. 

The Indians who inhabit this country, are fairer 
in complexion and better made than those of any 
other province. By nature they are a noble race of 
men; but they have been prostrated by the united 
influence of the government and the church. They 
are subjected to odious servitude, and they have no 
other reward but their bare subsistence. Whatever 
they are taught is only with a view to enlarge their 
capacity to minister to the comforts and luxuries of 
their selfish and crafty oppressors. They are care- 
fully kept ignorant of the Spanish language, of 
reading and writing, in order that their subjugation 
may be complete and perpetual. 


ARICA AND MOQUEGA 

Although the provinces I have described are all 
that are included in Upper Peru, I deem it proper 

M 


134 


to bestow some attention upon the adjacent Pacific 
coast, and the ports which it comprises, as they hold 
an important commercial relation with the interior 
provinces. The vast chain of mountains extending 
through this -country, from Cape Horn to North 
America, is here called the western Cordillera of 
the Andes, and forms a barrier which divides what 
is called La Sierra , or the cold and lofty regions, 
from the temperate, or the coast. Along the Paci- 
fic coast, for an extent of 500 leagues from the 
deserts of Atacama towards the north, it never 
rains, nor is there any thunder or lightning. This 
singular phenomenon has established here a per- 
petual spring. A gentle mist or dew falls from May 
to September, to moisten and fertilize the earth, and 
water, for the uses of the inhabitants and their cat- 
tle, and for the purposes of irrigation, is abundantly 
supplied at all times from the Cordilleras. This 
tract<of country along the coast, which is in width 
not more than 60 miles at any point, produces wheat, 
wine, oil, sugar, Indian corn, agi or Guinea pepper, 
and cotton. The principal productions are wine and 
oil; there are many vineyards and plantations of 
olives. Cotton is produced all the year round, the 
tree bearing both flowers and fruit at the same time; 
the annual yield here of the cotton tree is at least 
double that of the interior provinces, or of Asia, 
where one half the year there are constant rains, 
and the cotton is also much whiter from the same 
circumstance. 

The principal ports of this coast, adjacent or 
nearest to the interior provinces of Upper Peru, 
are Pisco, in lat. 13° 45 ' S. long. 76 Q west from 
Greenwich; Camana, Mollendo, Quilca, lat. i6° 
13' S.; Ilo, 17° 36' S. — this is a fine port, with good 
anchorage, Arica, lat. 18° 20' S.; Iquique, lat. 20° 
7 ( S. From this port to that of Arica, the inter- 
vening coast is high and clear. The port of Iquique 


135 


is very commodious, affording good anchorage in a 
bay of about 6 miles long, with from 8 to 16 fa- 
thoms, and a fine sandy bottom. There is a small 
island in front of the town, and the usual place of 
anchorage is to the leeward of that, between two 
small rocks which appear above the water. Cobija, 
a port in the province of Atacama, in Upper Peru, 
is situated in lat. 22° 39 l S. It is to these ports 
that the products of Arequipa, Cuzco, La Paz, 
Cochabamba, Potosi, and all the towns between the 
two Cordilleras, are carried. And in these ports, 
the English, during the late continental war, carried 
on a great traffic, in spite of the prohibitions of the 
Spanish laws. 

I have already remarked that the metallic regions 
of this country are near the coast. The provinces 
of Arica and Moquegua are included in the inten- 
dency of Arequipa, in Low Peru, and extend 246 
miles from north to south, and 48 miles from east 
to west. In this tract are situated the vallies of 
Moquegua, Locumba, and Tacna. 

There are 52 villages in these provinces: the chief 
towns are Arica and Moquegua; the population is 
about 32,000 of whom there are 2821 negro slaves, 
and 1872 free negroes — the remainder are whites, 
Indians, and mulattoes. 

Arica was formerly a considerable town, but it 
has declined; it contains at present about 3000 in- 
habitants. The houses are low, with flat roofs, 
which are mostly covered with mats. The princi- 
pal production of this province is agi , or Guinea 
pepper, whose annual produce amounts to about 
600,000 dollars. 

The city of Moquegua is situated in the interi- 
or, about 50 miles east of the port of Ilo, in a val- 
ley extending from the coast, and further inland. 
It contains about 12,000 inhabitants. In its neigh- 
bourhood are produced annually about 400,000 gal- 


J36 


Tons of wine, besides considerable quantities of oil. 
The count of Alastaya resides here, who is a great 
proprietor of vineyards. The valleys of Locumba 
and Tacna also produce an equal abundance of wine. 
The wine is principally consumed in the country, 
and great quantities of it are manufactured into 
brandy, which is much drank. 

There are produced here two varieties of wine, 
white and red, and of different qualities. The red 
wine, when kept *19 the cellars of the convents or 
of private gentlemen, for any considerable time, 
becomes of a fine quality, and is esteemed by con- 
noisseurs equal to the wines of Spain. The price 
of these wines in La Paz, is 8 or 9 dollars for two 
arrobas (50 lbs.); it being sold by weight. The 
price of brandy is less. The mode of transporting 
these liquors into the interior is curious; it is car- 
ried in goat-skins, called odres , on the backs of 
mules. The skins are taken from the goats in the 
most barbarous manner: the animal is suspended 
alive by his horns — the skin is then loosened around 
the neck, and stripped off! The skin-is afterwards 
dried, and partially tanned, then tarred on the out- 
side, when it becomes fit to receive the liquor. 
Each odre will commonly hold from 20 to 30 gal- 
lons. The wine is preserved in the vaults of the 
churches, in large vats, or reservoirs, lined with 
clay, and which will contain many hogsheads: it is 
kept in this way thirty and forty years and longer; 
wooden casks are unused, and almost unknown. 

The agi or Guinea pepper is an article in great 
demand, it is eaten by all classes of people. The 
price is from 4 to %5 for one aroba (25lbs.) The 
price of cotton is 10 or 12 shillings for an aroba. 
These are the prices at La Paz; they are much 
lower where the articles are produced, the expen- 
ses of transportation being very great. They are 
carried to market; on the backs of mules and asses. 


137 


These animals are bred in Tucuman and are brought- 
here young; they are fed on a species of tall grass, 
called alfa-alfa, which is very abundant, and upon 
which they fatten very fast, attaining to extraordi- 
nary strength and size. A considerable portion of 
the population of these provinces are muleteers. 

The cochineal is found in its native state along 
the coast; this insect feeds upon the fruit of a small 
tree called nopal or hygopal (Indian fig tree,) and 
which is designated by some botanists under the 
name of cactus opuntia maxima , and by Linngeus 
under that of cactus coccinellifer. The Indians use 
this insect in dyeing the wool of the Llama and Al- 
pacha, and which do not lose their brilliant and 
glossy appearance. The use of the cochineal as a 
dye-stuff, was known in the times of the Incas; there 
are fabrics and paintings at Cuzco, made in ancient 
times, which exhibit the same red colours, as are 
now produced by the cochineal. The Spaniards have 
entirely neglected its cultivation here, although the 
climate, there being no rains, is more favourable for 
its successful production than in Mexico, where, 
during the rainy season, the insects are obliged to 
be housed, or removed into districts, in which the 
rains occur at a different season of the year. 

In the valleys of Tackna, situated a few leagues 
inland from the port of Iquique, there are many 
vineyards, and there is also a rude manufactory of 
glass. The vineyards and olive plantations in these 
provinces, are manured by a kind of yellow earth, 
called huano , which is supposed to be the excrement 
of sea birds. It is procured from two small islands, 
one situated near Arica, and the other in the bay 
of Iquique, which are inhabited by Indians and ne- 
groes. This earth is so fertilizing, that it is suppos- 
ed to enrich the soil at least one hundred fold. 

At a distance of about six miles from Iquique 
are situated the silver mines of Huantajaya, which 
M 2 


138 


,are surrounded with beds of rock salt. These mines 
furnish annually from 45 to 52,t>00 lbs. of silver In 
1758 and ’89 there were found in the mines belong- 
ing to the family of colonel Loaysa, situated here, 
two lumps of massive silver, one weighing 200 and 
the other 800 lbs. There are also found in the 
mountains of Pico, in the neighbourhood, mines of 
silver and copper, and the latter in abundance. 

Among the inhabitants of the coast, there are a 
great number of free negroes and mulattoes who are 
educated, and possess independent fortunes. The 
mulattoes are particularly distinguished for their vi- 
vacity and volubility. They are fond of learning, 
and boast of their noble blood and character. They 
have obtained from the king letters patent, confer- 
ring upon them the dignity and title of “ Don,” as 
they esteem it; and which, if omitted by any one 
in addressing them, he is immediately reminded 
of it by his donship. They are excluded from the 
professions of law and the church; they therefore 
generally apply themselves to physic, which they 
practice with more quackery than skill. They are 
frequently to be met with in the interior cities of 
Peru, boasting of their dignity and their knowledge. 
They are cowards in war, and prefer talking to 
fighting; they cannot endure cold, nor the hard- 
ships of a campaign. In the rebellion of Tupac 
Amaru, two or three regiments of this caste, in 
crossing the cold mountains from Lima on their 
march to Cuzco, were attacked by Indians early in 
the morning, and being benumbed by the cold, they 
were unable to use their muskets. They sent in a 
flag of truce to ask an armistice until the sun had 
risen, which was refused, and they were totally de- 
feated. 

I shall conclude my sketch of Upper Peru, by 
some additional remarks upon the mines, the climate. 


139 


soil, productions, and commerce of that interest- 
ing country. 

The mines of gold and silver, occurring within 
15o and 23° south latitude, are situated, at the fol- 
lowing places: 

GOLD WASHINGS. 

Tipuani, Carabaya, Challana, Vilaque, and Chu- 
quiaguillo. 

GOLD ItfINES. 

Yani, Ananea, Consata, Araca, Rinconada, Chi- 
loco, Condo-Condo, Choque-camata, Pica, Cica- 
Cica, and Azangaro. 

SILVER MINES. 

Potosi, Lipez, Porco, Huantajaya, Aullagas, 
Caylloma, Charoma, Estarca, Lampa, Cerillos, Oru- 
ro, Popo, Chancani, Puno, Laycacota, Pica, Veren- 
guela, Kinsachata, Huyana-Potosi, Chuquiaguillo, 
Carangas, and Pichegua. 

There are mines of quicksilver at Pucarani and 
Guarina; and platina is found at Morocolo, in Low 
Peru. 

The quantity of the precious metals extracted 
from these several mines it is impossible accurately 
to estimate: it has been stated at about Si 4,000,000 
annually. There are probably 86,000,000 coined 
annually at Potosi and Lima, and which may be one 
third of the whole quantity of metal produced. M. 
Torres states, that the quantity of coin and bul- 
lion exported annually from Peru, amounts to 
88,240,000. 

It may not be uninteresting here to bestow some 
remarks upon the influence of these metals upon 
national wealth and industry in Peru, and more es- 
pecially, as some political writers of Europe main- 


140 


tain that the precious metals, far from being a use- 
ful production to South America, are the fruitful 
source of evils to that country; that its true inte- 
rests would be to abandon its mines of gold and sil- 
ver, and devote itself to agriculture and commerce; 
and that the working of mines of iron and copper, 
which they describe as things of intrinsic value, 
would be of greater utility. The celebrated Hum- 
boldt, — to whom the scientific world owe so many 
discoveries, and the South Americans, a rich tri- 
bute of gratitude for opening to the world the won- 
derful resources of their country, — has advanced 
these sentiments, and urged them upon the people 
of South America with no little zeal. I deem them, 
however they may be supported by weight of au- 
thority, to be clearly fallacious. 

The precious metals, from remote antiquity to 
the present time, have been used by all civilized 
nations as the token or representative of wealth, 
the measure of value, and the instrument as well as 
an article of exchange. And their value consists not 
in their being in themselves objects of consumption, 
or articles of absolute necessity to the existence of 
man, but because all nations have, by common con- 
sent, agreed to recognise them as the universal 
standard and measure of property or things of value. 
This convention of nations creates a demand for 
them, and demand is undoubtedly the ultimate and 
only permanent regulator of the exchangeable value 
of all commodities. Some political economists, like 
the learned Adam Smith, do indeed assert that, 
“ labour is alone the ultimate and real standard by 
which the value of all commodities can be estimat- 
ed.” Labour, no doubt, is one of the sources of 
value or wealth, but it ought not to be confounded 
with productions which are in themselves valuable. 
There is certainly too much laborious trifling in the 
world, to admit of the correctness of the proposition 


141 


that “ labour is the only and ultimate standard of 
value.” But to prove this proposition to be false, 
we need only to refer to the celebrated writer last 
mentioned, where he says, “ that the money price 
of labour is regulated by the demand for labour.” 
So it seems that labour itself, which has just been 
called the ultimate standard of value , is still regu- 
lated, even in the opinion of Dr. Smith, by some- 
thing else* which is demand. Labour is not, there- 
fore, the last standard; but in order to arrive at that, 
we must proceed one step further, to wit, to de s 
mand. It is demand then, after all, that regulates 
the value of things. According to the vulgar axiom, 
and there is frequently much truth in the sayings of 
the vulgar, which are emphatically the concentrated 
wisdom of ages, — “ a thing is worth what it will 
fetch.” Again, Humboldt says, that true wealth 
consists in the abundance of objects of consump- 
tion — in that of things , and not in the sign by which 
they are represented.” This is another fallacy, 
which is also supported by the high authority of 
Adam Smith; indeed, it is no doubt taken from his 
book, for he says that tfc real riches are in proportion 
to the quantity of consumable goods which any one 
may possess, or have money to purchase.” Why 
the wealth of this individual does not consist in his 
money as much as in the quantity of goods which 
his money will purchase, and why those goods must 
be consumable , or objects of consumption , I am at a 
loss to discover. According to my views of this 
subject, wealth consists in abundance of exchange* 
able or demandable commodities . If this is true, and 
also that demand regulates value, it is clear that gold 
and silver are articles of real value and component 
parts of wealth. There are certainly no articles 
known in society or commerce that are in greater 
demand than the precious metals — that men will 
endure so many hardships, or brave so many dan- 


142 


gers to obtain. The illustrious Locke, who thought 
upon this subject with the same correctness that he 
did upon every other of which he treated, “ con- 
sidered gold and silver as the most substantial part 
of the moveable wealth of nations.” 

There is also another palpable error in this 
proposition of Humboldt; he says that “ gold and 
silver are only the sign by which things are repre- 
sented.” To measure value, is not the only office 
of the precious metals in effecting exchanges; — as a 
yard, for instance, is the measure of length. A 
given quantity of these metals is considered of 
equal value with the things Exchanged; if I pay 
$2 for a bushel of wheat, the seller esteems the 
cash at least of equal value to the wheat. The 
precious metals then, have an intrinsic value in- 
dependent of the legal one which they possess as 
money. 

If the precious metals are only signs of value, 
then are bank notes, or paper promises , equally as 
good a circulating medium; a proposition, which I 
apprehend few politicians of the United States will 
seriously maintain at the present time, but which 
has been confidently asserted, and has no doubt 
aided in no small degree in introducing into this 
country the paper money system, which is now pro- 
ducing so many evils. 

That a demand for the precious metals will always 
exist, there can be little doubt, from their utility , 
beauty , and scarcity , according to Dr. Smith, but 
more than all, from the circumstance that they have 
been adopted by all civilized nations as a circulating 
medium — as a thing to exchange for every thing 
else. As long as luxuries, conveniences, nay, even 
necessaries, are in demand, so long will gold and 
silver, which alone can procure them all, be in de- 
mand also — unless, indeed, something else is substi- 
tuted in their stead as money, a thing not likely to 


143 


happen. Being the money of the world, the pre- 
cious metals have become a real and substantial 
necessary of life to all classes of society: to the 
prince, to enable him to carry on the operations of 
his government; and to the private individual, to 
procure for him the necessaries and comforts of 
life If not the immediate objects of consumption, 
they are the necessary agents by which those objects 
are procured. In the actual state of civilized life, 
they are objects of the first utility and necessity, as 
much so as the fire which warms you, or dresses 
your food. Besides, the precious metals are not 
only the instrument of commerce, but the inciting 
cause, the animating reward of all the industry and 
labour in the world. Man will not labour for mere 
conveniences: it is the hope of obtaining something 
beyond this, of surplus wealth, that stimulates him 
to overcome the inertise of his nature, and to sub- 
mit to the irksomeness of painful toil. The savage, 
who knows not the use of gold and silver, who is 
unacquainted with either conveniencies or luxuries, 
takes his scanty repast, just enough to satisfy the 
cravings of hunger, then wraps his blanket around 
him, and sleeps till hunger again returns to arouse 
and impel him to the chase: he is the rich man of 
the political economists; none have the necessaries 
of life in so great abundance as he. Dr. Smith 
says that “ every man is rich according to the de- 
gree in which he can enjoy the necessaries of life.” 
Then are we all rich, for which of us does not en- 
joy the necessaries of life? — and the rich are found 
in alms houses and hospitals as well as in splendid 
palaces. 

The precious metals are not an artificial produc- 
tion like manufactures, which presuppose agricul- 
ture, but they are the natural productions of the 
soil of Peru and Mexico, which demand labour like 
any other production, like the wheat, tobacco, and 


144 


cotton of the United States, with this only differ- 
ence, that they do not require seed or cultivation 
like the latter, but grow spontaneously in the earth. 
The value arising from that true test, the demand 
of gold and silver, induces the working of the mines, 
but as they cannot be worked without the articles of 
living being supplied to the workmen, it follows 
that the working of mines encourages agriculture, 
and enriches the agriculturist, who sells his surplus 
produce to the rich miners who want it; and hence 
the fact, that in Peru, the greatest markets are those 
in the vicinity of the mines. The mines in some 
measure supply the want of commerce, to this coum- 
try, which has always been prohibited by the go- 
vernment. We behold populous and wealthy cities 
rising up in the interior of the country, in inhospi- 
table climates, and on a barren soil, in the vicinity 
of gold and silver mines. What would have been 
the situation of Peru, no matter how fine the cli- 
mate, or how productive the soil, if it had no mines, 
or they had never been worked! 

It may happen that the precious metals may be 
sent into the world in great abundance, as was the 
case on the discovery of America, and the demand 
decreasing, they may decrease in value. If this 
should occur, it will operate in favour of the agri- 
culturist of Peru, or of that country where the in- 
crease begins, as by obtaining more metal for his 
produce, he will be able to purchase greater quanti- 
ties of conveniencies and luxuries; many things 
which before he could not obtain, will be within his 
reach, and the sphere of his comforts and enjoy- 
ments will be enlarged; having more money, he will 
be able to command a greater amount of the labour, 
or of the products of the labour, of other nations. 
This is too obvious to require illustration; and by 
increasing the quantity of the precious metals in 


145 


Peru, the amount of its national wealth will be in- 
creased. 

It is preposterous to pretend that it will be im- 
politic for Peru to work its mines, the rich products 
of which are as much its natural productions as 
Peruvian bark or Cochineal, and by which foreign 
commerce will be most powerfully attracted to its 
shores: and it is to an extended intercourse with 
foreign nations that this country must look for ad- 
vancement in knowledge, industry, arts, and civil 
and religious liberty. 

In Europe it may indeed be true that agriculture 
is the only fountain of its prosperity, because it 
furnishes the raw materials for manufactures which 
are the sources of its wealth; and I know not but 
the notions of political economy which I have been 
combatting may be applicable to that country, but 
the situation and interests of the new world are 
widely different. In South America, the mines are 
at present the only encouragement of agriculture 
and industry; in those parts which are the most dis- 
tant from the mines, although the most fertile, the 
inhabitants are less wealthy; easily supplying them- 
selves with the necessaries of life, here their indus- 
try ceases, and they are comparatively idle and in- 
dolent. But the people who dwell in the neigh- 
bourhood of the mines, become rich from selling 
the surplus produce of their soil, for the gold and 
silver of the miners, and they are enabled to enjoy, 
if not more of the i lere necessaries, certainly more 
of the comforts and luxuries of life. Thus it is 
that the prosperity of agriculture in Peru keeps 
pace with the progressive augmentation of surplus 
wealth, or of gold and silver. And here I cannot 
but remark the absurdity of the idea of Dr. Smith, 
that the “ mines of a country have no connexion 
with its industry.” 


N 


146 


The miners in Peru and Mexico are the patrons 
and supporters of the luxurious arts, like the princes 
of Europe. In the city of Mexico, which is full 
of wealthy miners, there are monuments of the arts, 
equal in magnificence to those of any city in the 
world; and if Peru does not exhibit the same gran- 
deur, it is because that country has been more op- 
pressed and ill governed than Mexico; and it is a 
fact that its governors, from the period of the con- 
quest to the present day, have been the most igno- 
rant of any in Spanish America.* 

Although the miners dwell in the most unfavour- 
able climates, and on the most barren soil, still they 
rear habitations there, and build flourishing towns 
and populous cities; and even after the mines are 
exhausted and abandoned, the colony remains, the 
hardy inhabitant having become attached to the 
soil, no matter how rude it is, which gave him birth. 
After prosperity has departed, and subsistence itself 
become precarious, we find him clinging to the bar- 
ren rock, and withering there, rather than be torn 
away. It is in vain to remind him how bleak the 
sky, how barren the soil, how tempestuous the cli- 
mate — we find him rebuilding his weather-beaten 
cottage on the broken rock which the lightning had 
riven, or on the sand which the torrents had not 
entirely swept away, obstinately refusing to quit his 
native soil. In the neighbourhood of Potosi, Lipez, 
and Aullagas, we find a people dwelling on the 
verge of eternal snows, surrounded by the tenants 
of those inhospitable regions, the Vicunas and 
Guanacos, in small romantic cottages on the sum- 
mits of the mountains; subsisting cheerfully on the 
milk of their goats and frozen potatoes, regardless 

* Pizarro could neither read nor write, and his successors have been 
generally in the same predicament. 


147 


of the tempest howling without, and of their lofty 
and exposed position. 

Who can doubt that the fine and fertile valleys of 
Peru, u where the flowers ever blossom, the beams 
ever shine,” will be populated, whenever the go- 
vernment shall secure to the citizen his rights, and 
shall encourage the emigration of enterprising for- 
eigners? 


CLIMATE. 

In the progress of the preceding statements, I 
have spoken of the climate of particular districts of 
Upper Peru; I will now endeavour to present a 
general view of the climate of the whole country. 

From the pass of Volcan, in the south, which is 
near the tropic, to the Cordillera of Vilcanota in 
the north, situated at 14° 30' south lat. the tract of 
country between the eastern and western Cordil- 
lera, is generally windy and cold, although some 
temperate and fruitful valleys intervene. This moun- 
tainous and rugged tract is called La Sierra ; it is 
rich in metallic wealth, and in addition to the pre- 
cious metals and quicksilver, there are mines of 
copper, tin, lead, and iron, in great abundance, and 
which are all worked except those of iron and 
quicksilver. The product of copper, tin, and lead, 
is abundant; these metals are used in the operations 
of mining, and the two former are exported in con- 
siderable quantities. 

In this region there are frequent storms of rain 
and hail, and on the mountains, snow; thunder- 
storms are also frequent. The year is divided into- 
only two seasons, the wet and the dry; the former 


148 


commencing in November and continuing to April, 
and the latter, or dry season, the remainder of the 
year; during this period there are no rains, and this 
is the winter of this climate, there being frequently 
frosts of considerable severity, and the ground being 
frozen so as to prevent cultivation. In the rainy 
months, potatoes, quinoa, oka, and other roots and 
grains, peculiar to the country, are cultivated, even 
on the table lands, and the declivities of the Cor- 
dilleras, The coldest weather which occurs in May 
and June, resembles the months of October and 
November in the northern states of North America; 
but fires are never lighted to warm apartments, — 
the same kind of dress is worn the year round, and 
cattle are never housed. The lofty regions are bare 
of trees: the table lands only exhibit a little stunted 
shrubbery, and a species of wiry grass, or rush, 
called Heechoo , which grows where nothing else 
will vegetate, and upon which the Vicunas and 
Guanacos feed. This rush is used by the Indians 
for roofing their cottages, and they make mats and 
ropes of the same substance. There is now a bridge 
over the river Desaguedero, on the main route from 
Lima to Buenos Ayres, the lengthwise, or string 
pieces of which consist of ropes of the size of 
cables made of this grass, resting upon the water, 
upon which canoes are placed crosswise, and over 
these are strewed great quantities of flags, collect- 
ed from the shores of the river and the lake. This 
bridge is repaired every year; it is said to have ex- 
isted after the same fashion, from the times of the 
Incas. 

In the valleys and ravines of this tract of coun- 
try, the climate is temperate and the soil fertile; 
and, from their sheltered situation, vegetation is 
never interrupted by frost; they are profusely wa- 
tered by the torrents which roll down the moun- 


149 


tains, and are well adapted to the production of 
luxuriant crops. 

On the eastern sides of the eastern Cordillera., 
the climate is uniformly warm; the seasons are di- 
vided in the same manner as in the former tract, 
the rainy season commencing in November and con- 
tinuing to April. There are here no frost or snow, 
and all the varieties of the climate consist in the 
graduations of heat, and in humidity and dryness. 
It is this part of Peru which possesses the finest 
climate; the province of Cochabamba is situated 
within this region, and here is Tipuani, celebrated 
for its gold, and for being seated at the head of the 
navigation of the Amazon.” 

On the west of the western Cordillera, or that of 
the coast, it never rains; the moisture of the earth 
is supplied from the torrents which descend from 
the mountains, and from the dews of Heaven. 
There is in this region some chilly weather; but the 
extremes of heat and cold are inconsiderable; there 
are here no thunder storms, but earthquakes are 
not unfrequent. There are some volcanic moun- 
tains in the range of the western Cordillera, but 
their fires seem to have expired; they have emitted 
no flames for many years. At the base of a moun- 
tain near the valley of Locumba, there are hot 
springs, impregnated with sulphur. This region 
along the coast, possesses a mild and genial tempe- 
rature; its soil is suited to the cultivation of all the 
tropical fruits, and its valleys are celebrated for 
producing the finest grapes. 

The healthfulness of the climate of Peru, is much 
and deservedly extolled; in some of the ports of 
the Pacific coast, the fever and ague prevails, but 
acute diseases are almost entirely unknown. The 
Indians, who live a temperate life, attain very gene- 
rally to an advanced age. Peru has been called the 
country of old men. 

N 2 


150 


SOIL AND PRODUCTIONS. 

I now proceed to speak more minutely of the 
mineral, vegetable, and animal productions of this 
country. 

Mineral Substances. 

Alum, (three kinds, epsom salts, glauber salts, 
nitre, or salt petre, soda, native verdigris, orpiment 
of Peru, salt, blue vitrol, vitriolated tartar, mag- 
nesia. 

Native Alum — There are three kinds of native 
alum found in this country, and which are called 
cachina blanca , or -white cachina , millo y and colque- 
nillOy or yellow cachina. Here nature offers this 
substance ready formed to your hands, and in the 
■-greatest purity; while in Europe it can be only ob- 
tained by tedious and expensive processes. The 
cachina blanca , is found abundantly on the frontiers 
of La Paz, embedded in masses of slate or argilla- 
ceous schistos. The millo is found plentifully in 
the deep defiles on both sides of the Cordilleras. 
It appears upon the slate or schistos rocks in the 
dry season, in a state of effloverescence, forming a 
crust of pure alum, which nature has perfectly com- 
bined, and made ready for the use of the manufac- 
turer in his most delicate operations. Although 
found amorphous, it may easily be crystalized by 
the most ordinary chemical processes. 

The third species, Colqueniilo , is found in great 
abundance, in beds on the borders of the Provinces 
of Porco and Chayanta, and combined with sul- 
phate of copper. Its matrix is chistos; its colours 
as it appears in nature, is diversified with shades of 
white and yellow. This sort is particularly prized 
by manufacturers on account of its excess of sul- 
phuric acid. 


151 


Green Vitriol. (Sulphate of iron?) This substance^-— 
is found in the greatest abundance, in the town of 
Tarapacha, in the Province of Carangas. It is 
found in its native state in the dry season. 

Epsom Salts. (Su’phate of magnesia .) These 
salts are found in great quantities in their native 
state in masses of slate, and sometimes united with 
miilo, particularly on the eastern sides and summits 
of the Cordilleras, and in the ravines formed by the 
rivers Pilcomayo and Cachimayo. 

Glauber Salts. {Sulphate of soda?) This substance 
is found in the dry season along the road from 
Cuzco to Potosi and Jujui. It is found in the 
shape of a crust, efflorescing from the earth, and a 
person may collect great quantities in a short time; 
an Indian will collect 150 lbs. in a day, with the 
copper vessel in which he keeps his Chicha. 

Pure Nitre. The vast abundance in which this 
valuable substance is found in Peru is truly aston- 
ishing. It occurs in its native pure state; and is fit 
for commerce without the aid of any chemical pro- 
cess. It abounds on the tops and sides of the hills; 
and besides, there are many plants which yield it 
abundantly by laxiviation. 

Native Soda. This salt is found in great plenty 
and purity throughout the whole country; in the 
plains bordering on the lake Titicaca, in Paria and 
Oruro, and in the valleys of Cochabamba. This is 
an important article of commerce; in Europe it is 
produced from the combustion of sea plants, but in 
Peru it is found in its native state. 

Native Verdigris ( Sub-acetate of Copper?) This 
mineral substance is found in the copper mines of** 
Carangas, Lipez, Atacama, and other Provinces. 
The price here is from 2 to $3 for 25 lbs.; while 
the artificial verdigris sells for gl a pound. 

Orpiment of Ptru ( a Suphuret of Arsenic .) A 
species of yellow paint, much esteemed, consisting 


152 


of arsenic combined with sulphur; it is found in tht 
different mines of the Cordillera of the coast, and 
in the Province of Carangas. This is an important 
article in dyeing, and from it the arsenic of com- 
merce may be easily obtained. 

Common bait. This country contains immense 
deposites of this salt. The ravines in the dry sea- 
son exhibit immense quantities of it crystalized in 
a high state of purity; and it is also found in large 
veins in the rocks, and of the same excellent quali- 
ty. There are inexhaustible mines of it in the set- 
tlement of Yocalla, near Potosi, from which the 
miners of that place are supplied; and also in the 
Province of Yamparaes and other places. 

All the foregoing substances are produced ready 
formed to your hand, without the aid of art; indeed 
Peru, from its position under a tropical sun, its long 
rains and continued droughts, seems a vast labora- 
tory, where that great chemist, nature, carries on 
her operations on the grandest scale, and leaves lit- 
tle for man to do. 

Blue Vitriol ( Sulphate of Copper .) This substance 
is found in its native state, but in very small quan- 
tities; but by combining sulphur and copper, which 
are abundant all over Peru, it may easily be pro- 
duced. 

Vitriolated Tartar {Sulphate of Potash.') Phis 
substance may be obtained by a very coarse chemi- 
cal process in this country. 

Magnesia. — Is easily obtained by decomposing 
Epsom salts, which yield about 40 per cent, of white 
magnesia. 

Vegetable Substances. 

I. Medicinal. Gum Arabic, camphor, hamahama, 
tanitani, arnica of the Andes, guachanca, quinqui- 
na, jalap, rhubarb, sarsaparilla; gums copal, storax, 
tragacanth, myrrh, guaicum and benzoin, frankin- 


153 


<;ense, balsams of copaiva, Peru, and tolu, gentian; 
aloes, cullen, (proralen grandulosa,) calaguala, (pro- 
lipodium canceolatum) cbanchalagua, (a species of 
gentian,) vira-vira (graphalum vira-vira,) chamico, 
azarguero, ipecachuana, cinnamon, and a variety of 
bitumens and resins. 

Gum Arabic. This substance is produced from 
the most common trees of the country, but nobody 
takes the trouble to collect it. The trees which 
yield it are of the same species with those from 
which it is obtained from Egypt and Arabia. 

Camphor. I know not that the real laurus cam - 
phora grows in the forests of Peru, but there are 
many trees of this country which are impregnated 
with this substance, and from which it may be 
abundantly obtained by sublimation. These trees 
occur in the ravines of the eastern Cordillera; and 
at Arque in Cochabamba the odour of camphor may 
be perceived at a great distance. 

Hamahama. A species of valerian , which is found 
abundantly in the Cordilleras; there is also another 
species, valeriana catacata , which is found on the 
summits of those mountains. 

Quinquina , ( Cinchona , Peruvian bark.) There are 
several kinds of this bark produced in Peru, but the 
principal are the pale, the yellow, and the red. This 
important article in the Materia Medica, is found 
only in Peru. The trees from which it is taken, 
are found in the eastern borders of La Pa.z, and in 
all the Provinces of the eastern Cordillera; they are 
slender and straight, rarely exceeding ten feet in 
height, and are about the size of a man’s leg. They 
never occur in clusters, but are thinly scattered 
throughout the forests; they are cut down by the 
Indians, and the bark is peeled off. The bark is 
collected principally by the Indians. 

Cinnamon. This valuable substance is abundant 
in the regions east of the Cordilleras, in the neigh- 


154 


bourhood of Tipuatii, on the borders of the sources 
of the Amazon, and in the Provinces of Santa Cruz 
de la Sierra, Moxos, and Chiquitos. In its uncul- 
tivated state, the only way in which it occurs here, 
it is equal to the oriental cinnamon, except that it 
mav be somewhat thicker. It is not made an arti- 
cle of commerce in Peru. 

II. Economical. Tar, yellow wood of Santa 
Cruz, churisiqui, molle and tola, chapi, rocou, or 
Brazil wood, airampo, and indigo, cocoa, tobacco, 
coffee, cotton, potatoe, banana, oka, quinoa, agi, 
agave, vainilla, alspice, wax, chonta, mahogany, luc- 
ma, ginger, olives, grapes, palms, tamarinds. 

Many of these substances are dye stuffs, such 
as the yellow wood of hanta Cruz , chapi , and airam- 
po , the former for dyeing yellow, and the two latter, 
red. 

Lucma and chonta are fine woods used in cabinet 
work. The laucma yields a delicious fruit, and the 
chonta is equal in colour, in fineness of texture, and 
solidity, to ebony. It is impossible for me to enu- 
merate the many fine woods which abound in the 
extensive forests of this country, for they have ne- 
ver been explored by civilized man. The lower 
declivities of the Cordilleras are heavily timbered, 
but it is in the forests extending from Cochabamba 
and Tipuani, east and north, that the trees of the 
largest size are found, and some of which, I should 
imagine, are well adapted to ship-building. The 
pine and cedar are common trees of the country. 
Odoriferous and flowering shrubs are abundant. 
These forests are a mine of botanical riches, but 
such is the non-chalance of the Spaniards, that they 
have never been explored, except by the Indians, in 
pursuit of coca, or game. 

Airampo. — Is a species of the cactus upon which 
the cochineal feeds. It is a prickly shrub producing 
red berries. 


155 


Incligo. This valuable substance is found in great 
abundance in La Paz, in Cochabamba, and Santa 
Cruz de la Sierra, but it has never been cultivated. 

Cococu This is found in Moxos, in Apolobamba, 
at the foot of the last chain of mountains in de- 
scending the eastern Cordillera. 

Coca. This substance is the tobacco of the In- 
dians, and resembles the betel of the East; its bo- 
tanical name is erythroxiglum Peruvianum . 

Tobacco. Is cultivated in several parts of the 
country, but under royal authority. Its general cul- 
tivation was interdicted by the Spanish laws. 

Cotton. The provinces on the east of the east- 
ern Cordillera, are the most favourable countries in 
the world for the production of this valuable sub- 
stance; particularly Cochabamba, in the valleys ex- 
tending from Arque to Valle Grande. 

Potatoe ( papa in the ^uechtut language, and choke 
in the Aymara .) This important vegetable is a na- 
tive of America, and is believed to be an indigenous 
production of Peru. There are produced in this 
country several kinds of potatoe; one a long kind, 
of which chunu is made. This substance is made 
by first freezing the potatoes, then pounding them, 
and drying them in the sun. It is esteemed a deli- 
cate food, and can be preserved many years. There 
is another potatoe which is yellow, like the yolk of 
an egg, and of fine flavour. There is another kind, 
which is of a pink colour, and is also excellent food. 

Banaria. To this fruit some politicians have at- 
tributed the indolence of the Spanish colonists, and 
have even suggested that its cultivation ought to 
be prohibited. It is easily cultivated; its yield, on 
a given quantity of ground, is estimated to be to 
that of potatoes as 44 to 1; and besides it is ex- 
tremely nutritious. It is cultivated in the eastern 
Cordillera. 


156 


Oka (oxalis tuberosa.) A sweet rAot, growing in 
the cold and barren soils, and an important article 
of human food in Peru. 

§>uinoa ( Peruvian rice.) An important grain as 
an article of food, and of it and Indian corn is made 
chic ha , the beer of the Indians. 

Agi ( Guinea pepper ) Called by the Indians ooclioo, 
and by botanists capsicum baccatum; its pods are one 
quarter of a yard in length; it is produced abun- 
dantly on the coast. 

Agave. This substance, so valuable in Mexico, 
is not at all cultivated in Peru. In Mexico, a fer- 
mented and much esteemed liquor resembling cider, 
is made of its juice. Its cultivation is very profit- 
able. It is found in the cold and lofty regions of the 
Cordilleras. 

^ Animal Substances. 

Sal ammoniac, wool, cochineal, furs, plumage. 

Sal ammoniac. This substance is ranked among 
animal substances on account of its being most com- 
monly procured from animal matter. The Indians 
dwelling on the summits of the Andes, admit their 
domestic animals, the Llama and Alpacha, into their 
cabins, where they are fed and housed; and from 
the scarcity of fuel in those sterile regions, they 
burn the excrement of these animals. From the 
ashes of this substance thousands of quintals of sal 
ammoniac may easily be made, as these animals 
feed upon a grass strongly impregnated with salt, 
and which also constitutes a part of the fuel of the 
Indians. 

Wool. Sheep are dispersed in great numbers all 
over the Cordilleras; and they contribute by their 
fleeces, milk, and flesh, to the comforts of the In- 
dians who inhabit those inhospitable regions. 

There are four distinct species of sheep peculiar 
to this country; the lama, the alpacha , or paco , the 


1 57 

guanaco , and the vicuna. Buffon has inaccurately 
described the guanaco as being the wild lama, and 
the vicuna as the wild alpacha; he is equally incor- 
rect when he says that the alpacha is a beast of 
burden of the Indians. I was born in the country 
of the alpacha, and know the contrary to be the 
fact; the alpacha is a slender and feeble animal. 

The lama and alpacha are domestic animals. The 
lama is about the size of a stag; of different colours, 
white, brown, and black. This animal is sometimes 
called the American Camel , but the points of resem- 
blance are not very numerous or striking. The lama 
chews the cud like the' common sheep; its flesh is 
excellent food: I have often tasted it, and esteem it 
equal to mutton. Its wool is long and coarse, and 
of that of the wild lama the Indians make their 
clothing. It is the common beast of burden of the 
Indians; its usual load is five arobas, (l25lbs.); it is 
slow motioned, having a lofty and majestic gait, ac- 
companied with a droning noise as it marches along, 
and carrying its head high in the air: in temper, it 
is mild, docile, and would no doubt be patient un- 
der injuries, if they were ever inflicted; but the In- 
dians never treat this noble animal with cruelty. It 
was the beast of burden of the Peruvians, in the 
times of the Incas. 

Alpacha. This animal is smaller than the lama. 
Its colour is white, black, and sometimes spotted. 
Its flesh, I believe is never eaten; its wool is very 
fine and valuable. 

Guanaco. This animal is still smaller than the 
alpacha; its colour is usually a pale red, resembling 
a rose dried in the sun; its belly and legs are white; 
its wool is fine and valuable. This animal is wild; 

I never saw one domesticated; it frequents the most 
rude and inaccessible parts of the Cordilleras, and 
is extremely fleet of foot. 


o 


158 


The vicuna is of the same size as the guanaco; it 
is somewhat taller than the common English sheep, 
but with a smaller body. Its colour is ordinarily 
brown, with white belly and legs. This animal is 
more vigorous in the elevated regions of the Cor- 
dilleras than in low and temperate situations; and 
the difference in the wool in the two situations is 
very perceptible: that in the higher parts being much 
the finest. 

The vicunas inhabit the rudest and wildest parts 
of the Cordilleras, where the severity of the climate 
and the continual snows drive off every other ani- 
mal, except the guanaco. They are found in abun- 
dance throughout the whole range of the Cordille- 
ras, from the borders of Chili far to the north. IA 
passing along the eastern Cordillera, in the neigh- 
bourhood of Choque-Camata, in Cochabamba, and 
towards the borders of Chili, you frequently see 
droves of many hundreds of these animals like flocks 
of sheep. They are extremely fleet-footed and are 
caught with difficulty in the chase, but their won- 
derful timidity furnishes an easy mode of taking 
them. The Indian hunters, by a mode with which 
they are acquainted, collect them together in a place 
surrounded with pickets fixed in the ground, upon 
the tops of which bits of cloth are fastened, which 
being shaken by the wind, so terrify the timid vi- 
cunas that they make no effort to escape, and are 
easily caught. They are never sheared, and every 
fleece costs the life of one of these valuable animals. 
They are sometimes hunted with dogs and guns 
like deer. They are easily domesticated, and be- 
come as tame and as familiar with man as a dog. 
They are frequently to be found in the Indian cabin, 
and sometimes in the houses of the rich in the in- 
terior cities. 

The wool of the alpacha is of an excellent quali- 
ty, but that of the vicuna is perhaps the finest in 


159 


the world. It is thick and bushy, extremely fine, 
soft and silky to the touch; and possesses an extra- 
ordinary gloss and lustre; it is more like silk than 
ordinary wool, and it does not lose its glossiness by 
being dyed. In this animal is found the bezoar 
stone , which is considered equal to the oriental. 

Cochineal , (called Maekno by the Indians.) This 
insect, which occurs in its native state in abundance 
in Peru, is not cultivated there, but its importance, 
if it were cultivated, may be estimated from the 
fact that its annual exportation from Mexico, in 
years of peace, amounts to nearly two and a half 
millions of dollars. Its price at Vera Cruz is about 
S3 a pound; in New York, at the present time, it 
is from 6 to S8. 

This valuable product is suffered to grow, and to 
perish, without exciting the attention of the incu- 
rious Spaniard. 

Fur. The fur of the chinchilla is not inferior to 
that of the martin. It is already exported to Eu- 
rope in considerable quantities. The chinchilla is 
a little animal, about the size of a cat; it is found in 
Lipez, afld generally on the Cordilleras; its flesh is 
often eaten, and esteemed a delicacy. 

The furs also of the zorillo, and the bullin , an 
amphibious animal, are very valuable. The skins 
of the American tiger are collected in considerable 
quantities by the Indians. 

Plumage. Ostrich feathers are collected by the 
Indians. The ostrich is found on the bleak and 
barren regions of the Cordilleras in considerable 
abundance. 

But the most remarkable bird of South America 
is the condor , which is between three and four feet 
in height, and whose wings are at least fourteen 
feet from end to end. These mammoth birds are 
domesticated; their colour is a dark brown, with a 
white collar around their necks. At the bull feasts 


160 


they are often turned into the arena to light with 
the bulls; they are of remarkable strength, and will 
run and fly with amazing swiftness. 

There are between 40 and 50 species of parrots in 
this country, some of which are very large and 
beautiful. 

There are between 40 and 50 species of parrots 
in this country, some of which are very large and 
beautiful. 

In the preceding remarks upon the productions 
of Upper Peru, it has not been my object to write 
the natural history of that country, but to notice 
such of its products as may hereafter become im- 
portant articles of foreign commerce. I will now 
point out others, which more particularly concern 
the domestic economy of the country. 

Wheat. This valuable grain is produced in great 
abundance in Cochabamba, in the province of Lare- 
caja in La Paz, and in the Intendencies of Arequipa 
and Cuzco. At Cuzco it is so abundant that the 
price of 8 loaves of bread weighing 18oz. each, and 
of the first quality, is sixpence; and that of the 
second quality is a halfpenny a loaf, of the same 
weight. 

The Intendency of Cuzco is extremely fertile, 
and furnishes the cold districts of Peru with great 
quantities of wheat and maize. Judge Bland, late 
United States’ commissioner to South America, in 
his excellent report on Chili, has certainly been mis- 
informed when he says, “ none of the tropical re- 
gions of America, either on the Atlantic or Pacific 
ocean, produce wheat, or indeed any bread stuff, in 
sufficient abundance for the inhabitants” — and again, 
“from Acapulco to Cobija, (the country) is entirely 
dependant upon Chili for bread.” The present high 
price of wheat at Lima (825 a bushel,) and along 
the Pacific coast, is owing to several accidental 
causes: — to the revolution, which has so busily en- 


161 


gaged the Cochabambians and the people of Cuzco 
that they have had no leisure to attend to the cul- 
tivation of their fields; — and to the great expense of 
transportation, in consequence of the scarcity of 
mules. The supply of these animals, from Tucuman, 
has been entirely suspended during the present war. 
I am confident that Cuzco and Cochabamba can 
alone supply all Peru with wheat. 

The mean produce of wheat in Peru, compared 
to that of other countries, is truly astonishing. It 
is computed by Humboldt that the produce of 
wheat in the plains of Caxamarca in Low Peru, is 
from 18 to 20 for 1, while that of France is from 
5 to 6 for 1, and chat of Kentucky, Tennessee, and 
Lousiana, is 4 for 1. From these data, we may 
estimate the average produce of wheat in Caxamar- 
ca, to be from 60 to 70 bushels an acre. 

Maize (Indian corn.) A native production of 
America, like the potatoe. It is produced in amaz- 
ing abundance in Cuzco, and yields from 1 to 200 
fold. Several varieties are cultivated, one whose 
kernal is an inch long. The stalks usually attain 
the height of from 8 to 10 feet, and they contain al- 
most as much sugar as the sugar-cane; a syrup, re- 
sembling molasses, is frequently extracted from 
them. 

Rice . — Is produced in considerable abundance in 
fche eastern Provinces. 

Sugar. The sugar cane is cultivated in Cuzco, 
Arequipa, Larecaja, and Santa Cruz de la Sierra. 
Th sugar of Cuzco is esteemed the best, although 
the climate of Arequipa, on account of the absence 
of rain, seems most favourable to its successful cul- 
ture. 

Horned cattle — Are scarce and dear in Peru, 
compared to Tucuman and some other provinces 
of kio de la Plata, and are of small size. The 
farmers use oxen altogether in cultivating their 
o 2 


fields. In the warm and temperate regions, cows 
supply the inhabitants with milk; while in the cold, 
sheep’s milk is wholly used, and of which butter 
and cheese are made. I have already borne tes- 
timony to the excellence of the cheese of Paria, 
which is made of the milk of sheep. These ani- 
mals (common sheep) are in great numbers in this 
country; the fields are almost covered with them. 
Their wool is an important article of internal com- 
merce. 

Fruit. It is unnecessary, and indeed, it would 
be impossible for me to enumerate all the varieties 
of fruits to be found in this country; they are pro- 
duced, both native and exotic, in the greatest pro- 
fusion and perfection. The gardens of the convents 
in Cuzco can only be compared to the fairy scenes 
of Eastern romance, or the visions of poetic fancy. 
Among the exotics we may reckon almost all the 
fruits of Europe; of grapes they had a great va- 
riety of their own, or which were introduced by the 
Spaniards after the conquest; and in addition to 
these, Mr. Bonpland, the celebrated companion of 
Humboldt, brought to Buenos Ayres a few years 
since, thirteen varieties of grapes from the vine- 
yards of France, together with some fruit trees and 
valuable plants, many of which have, no doubt, al- 
ready found their way to the gardens of Cuzco and 
Cochabamba. Of olives great quantities are culti- 
vated in Arequipa; they are of unusual size, and 
the oil which is made from them is excellent, and 
very cheap throughout all Peru. 


COMMERCE. 

The commerce of Peru has heretofore been 
wholly confined to 'Spain. The Spanish merchant 
introduced his goods through two channels, Lima 
and Buenos Ayres, which were called puertos may- 


163 


ores in contradistinction to the puertos menores , 
such as Arica, Ilo, &c. which could not trade di- 
rectly with the mother country. The Philippine 
Islands also carried on a trade with Lima, and had 
a factory, or mercantile company there, called Gre- 
mios , with branches in the interior towns. The 
commodities of the East introduced in this way in- 
to Peru, have been estimated to amount annually to 
55270 , 230 , which were exchanged for gold and sil- 
ver to the amount of § 2 , 780 , 000 . The European 
goods imported, are exchanged for gold and silver, 
and besides, for copper, Peruvian bark, Alpacha 
and Vicuna wool, chinchilla skins, and some other 
trifling articles. 

The consumers of foreign commodities in Peru, 
have been only Spaniards and Creoles, including a 
few mestizos and mulattos, which altogether may 
be one fourth of the whole population. The cholos, 
negroes, and Indians, almost entirely use articles of 
domestic manufacture. In the intendency of Cuz- 
co, there are large manufactories of baize, the ful- 
ling and dressing of cloths being prohibited by the 
King. Notwithstanding which prohibition, during 
the late continental war in Europe, fine woollen 
fabrics were made at these manufactories. Blan- 
kets of a fine quality are manufactured, and in the 
intendency of Puno, Indian cloths and carpets are 
made, which supply the coast. The wool for these 
manufactories, is supplied from that region of coun- 
try called La Sierra , situated between the Cordille- 
ras. The principal cotton manufactories are in 
Cochabamba and some parts of La Paz. 

The interior commerce between Upper and Low 
Peru, has been calculated at £ 6 , 693 , 513 , annually. 
The amount of foreign goods introduced through 
Buenos Ayres into Peru is estimated, by the Secre- 
tary Moreno, to have been, before the revolution, 
£ 18 , 000 , 000 , annually; and the amount introdu- 


164 


ced into all America, according to M. Torres, is 
g 1 00,000,000. But the foreign commerce hereto- 
fore carried on with South America, affords no cer- 
tain data from which we may calculate what will be the 
future commerce of that country. The merchants 
of Cadiz, who monopolized the colonial trade of 
Spain, did not proceed upon any regular commer- 
cial system, except that of buying cheap of the colo- 
nies, and selling dear to them, and they were only 
the agents of foreign merchants; the same routine 
was followed year after year for nearly three cen- 
turies; no new branches of trade were opened, but 
an universal languor pervaded all their operations. 
Besides, the colonies were subjected to the united 
influence of the worst of governments, and of a re- 
ligion which has been a blast upon every country 
where it has predominated. Until within a few 
years, the colonies were not permitted to trade with 
each other; they were placed in the position of belli- 
gerents, and their ports in that of besieged or block- 
aded towns; and even the mother country herself 
could not carry on a trade with them. At first, 
Seville monopolized the whole commerce of South 
America, and it was afterwards slowly and gradu- 
ally extended to Cadiz and the other ports, but it 
was forever subjected to odious restrictions. To 
enforce them, the penal code of Spain was exhaust- 
ed; and to the pains of death and confiscation of 
property, were added the fearful anathemas of the 
Church. It was not until the year 1778, in the ad- 
ministration of Galvez, that the free commerce of 
South America was granted to the merchants of 
Spain, but its manufactures were still shackled by 
the laws.* 

* In a royal order of the 6th December, 1784, a ter a recital 
that the wool of the Vicuna had been used in ihe manufacture 
of ha's at Lima, which was contrary to law, and to the great 
prejudice of the manufactures of the mother country, it was 


165 


From the few lights which are shed upon the 
commerce of Peru, it is impossible to judge of the 
present extent of the market, the quantity of goods 
demanded, or the number of consumers. A feeble 
light is indeed derived from the example of Bue- 
nos Ayres, and the wealth and population of Peru. 
The country of Low Peru, which extends from 
Tumbez, in lat. 3o 30 S. to the Cordillera of Vil- 
canota, in lat. 14° 30' S. embraces a large extent of 
territory, including eight intendencies, eight popu- 
lous cities, and 1460 small towns or villages. The 
capital, Lima, contained, according to an accurate 
census taken in 1 798, 52,627 inhabitants, without 
including tributary Indians, or the neighbouring 
villages.* The city of Cuzco, the ancient metro- 
polis of the Incas, situated in the interior, is nearly 
equal to Lima in population, and but little inferior 
to it in wealth. The whole population of Peru has 
been variously estimated at from 1,700,000 to 
3,000,000. The inhabitants along the coast consist 
chiefly of whites and mulattoes, who generally 
speak the Spanish language, and are possessed of 
property, while those of La Sierra are mostly tribu- 
tary Indians. Wealth is here more equally divided 
than in Mexico; the mines are richer, and are at 
present, I imagine, better worked. Steam engines 
have been recently introduced at Lima, and chy- 
mistry and mineralogy are beginning to be well un- 
ordered that all the Vicuna wool should be bought up on ac- 
count of government, and sent to Spain. This order is refer- 
red to by Dean Funes in his History of Buenos Ayres, to show 
that Humboldt is mistaken in the assertion that the king of 
Spain never issued any order to prohibit or discourage manu- 
factures in the colonies. 

* In the year 1682, when the Duke de la Palata, the Vice- 
roy, made his entrance into Lima, three whole streets were 
paved with ingots of solid silver, each weighing 200 marks, and 
being from 12 to 15 inches in length, estimated at 54,000,000 
dollars. In 1700, there were 400 carriages in this city. 


166 


derstood. When this country shall have gained its 
freedom, the Indians, mestizos, and cholos, who 
altogether are very numerous, will be added to the 
consumers of foreign commodities, and will of 
course greatly increase the demand. 

Although I have not been able to ascertain the 
precise amount of foreign goods imported into Bu- 
enos Ayres since the revolution, yet I am confident 
it has been very great; and the beneficial influence 
of commerce upon civilization and industry, has 
been amply demonstrated in its happy effects upon 
the people of Buenos Ayres and the interior pro- 
vinces. Anterior to the ordinance of the King 
opening the ports of the La Plata, the interior pro- 
vinces were in extreme want; wheat perished in 
the fields; the flesh of bullocks was left to putrefy 
on the earth, or to be devoured by wild dogs and 
vultures; the people, wrapped in their ponchos , 
with their butcher-knives and catch-ropes, the 'only 
implements of their industry, presented the most 
miserable picture of wretchedness and sloth; abound- 
ing in commodities of the first necessity to the sub- 
sistence of man, having a plentiful surplus, suffi- 
cient to have purchased for them every convenience 
and luxury of life, yet being far distant from a place 
of demand, and their ports shut up, those otherwise 
valuable articles were of no use to them, and per- 
ished on their hands. But when the revolution 
broke out, the English, with their characteristic en- 
terprise, poured their goods into Buenos Ayres, 
and they were sold at low prices, and were thus 
thrown within the reach of all classes; the farmers 
of the interior exchanged their hides, beef and 
wheat, which they did not want, for the conveni- 
ences and luxuries of Europe; they procured com- 
modities which before they had never imagined; 
and along with their merchandise, the English in- 


167 


troduced their customs, their improvements in the 
arts, and in the comforts of life. 

From the re-conquest of Chili, in October 1817, 
to July 1818, there arrived in the ports of that 
country, twenty-four American vessels, whose car- 
goes were estimated at g 1,3 8 7, COO; twenty English 
vessels, whose cargoes amounted to gl, 835,000; 
two Russian, one Swedish, and one French; the 
whole, according to the Report of Judge Bland, 
amounting to $4, 000,000. In this short period, a 
greater number of foreign vessels arrived in Chili, 
than in fifty years before; and the people of this 
country, like their brethren of Buenos Ayres, must 
have experienced many important benefits from this 
foreign commerce. 

The preceding facts lead to several impoitant 
and interesting considerations. 

1st. The countries of Upper and Lower Peru, 
alike in population, habits, interests, and produc- 
tions, and bordering upon each other, will hereafter 
probably carry on their foreign commerce, either by 
Cape Horn, or the isthmus of Darien. On their 
long and safe coast, foreign ships will find commo- 
dious harbours, where the merchants of every clime 
can carry their merchandise, and exchange it for 
those valuable productions which I have noticed in 
the preceding letters. But there are other chan- 
nels of commercial communication which may be 
opened with this country, which, in the language of 
Humboldt, is destined to change the commercial 
face of nations. I have already spoken of the na- 
vigation of the Amazon. This magnificent river 
rises in Peru, and after running a northwardly and 
eastwardly direction a distance of between three and 
four thousand miles, empties into the Atlantic ocean, 
just below the West Indies. The whole of this dis- 
tance, from the foot of the Andes to the ocean, this 
river is navigable, and the navigation may be per- 


168 


formed in thirty days; and, although its current in 
the rainy season may prevent the easy ascent of 
vessels, it will afford, like the Mississippi, a noble 
channel for steam -boat navigation. 

And here I cannot pass over the splendid and 
much talked of project, of cutting a canal across 
the isthmus of Darien, to connect the Atlantic and 
Pacific oceans. The continent, at the narrowest 
point, the isthmus of Tehuantepec, is forty-five 
leagues wide. There are here two rivers, the Rio 
Huasacualco and the Chimalapa, the former emp- 
tying into the gulf of Mexico, and the latter into 
the Pacific ocean. Humboldt states that the Rio 
Huasasacualco forms in reality, a commercial com- 
munication between the two oceans; and that, dur- 
ing the late war with the English, the indigo of 
Gautimala came by the way of this isthmus to Vera 
Cruz, and thence to Europe. 

The Lake Nicaragua has been considered as 
affording the most convenient point of canal com- 
munication. This river communicates on the east, 
by the river San Juan, with the sea of Antilles. 
Here a canal would be cut across the isthmus 
which separates the Lake Nicaragua from the gulf 
of Papagayo, on the Pacific coast. It is asserted 
by Humboldt, that the ground here appeals very 
little elevated; and Dampier says expressly that it 
is a little hilly, but generally low and level. 

There is another point where a water communi- 
cation might be effected, by means of the river 
Ghangre which empties into the sea of Antilles. 
This river is navigable to Cruces, where it is one 
hundred and thirty feet in width, and it may be as- 
cended, in four or five days, to this place, from 
whence to Panama it is only five small leagues, ac- 
cording to Humboldt. Between these two points 
the Cordillera stretches north; from the summit of 
which, it is said that both oceans can be seen at the 


169 


same time. Upon an assertion of Wafer, that the 
hills, forming the central chain of this Cordilleras 
are separated from one another by valleys, which 
allow free course for the passage of rivers, Hum- 
boldt remarks, that it this is true, we might believe 
in the possibility of a canal from Cruets to Panama, 
of which the navigation would only be interrupted 
by a few locks. 

It is astonishing, that, although the project of a 
canal across the isthmus of Darien has occupied 
every mind for more than three centuries, no sur- 
vey of the ground has ever been made; the practi- 
cability of such a canal, however, can no more be 
doubted, than the immeasurable mass of benefits 
which would result from it to the commercial world. 
I do not hesitate to say, that a communication of 
navigable waters across that narrow isthmus which 
connects the two Americas, would produce as mo- 
mentous changes upon the commerce and the wealth 
of the world, as the discovery of the passage to In- 
dia by the Cape of Good Hope. Like that, it would 
change the course of navigation to the East, and 
Peru and Mexico would be intervening points in 
that new route, with the enterprise and industry of 
Europe and the United States on the one hand, and 
the rich products of Asia on the other, and eager 
to exchange their gold and silver for the manufac- 
tured goods of the former, and the silks and spices 
of the latter. Next to Peru and Mexico, the Uni- 
ted States are more interested in this splendid pro- 
ject than any other nation, on account of their prox- 
imity to South America, their commerce with the 
East Indies, the precious metals of Peru and Mexi- 
co, the furs^ of Nootka Sound, and their establish- 
ment at Columbia river, on the Pacific ocean. 

2d. At least five millions of new consumers of 
foreign goods will be created at once, whenever the 
colonial system shall be destroyed. And whether 
p 


iro 


the much abused people of this country shall be- 
come warriors or agriculturists; whether there 
shall arise a Caesar, or a Washington, to foster their 
infant liberties, or bury them in the dust: or some 
descendant of the Incas, inspired with the genius of 
Manco Capac, shall arise to break their iron yoke, 
and to collect together, in their ancient metropolis, 
the wandering and wretched remnant of the chil- 
dren of the Sun; whatever may be the future for- 
tunes of the Peruvians, it is certain that the empire 
of commerce will be extended, and the enterprise 
and industry of the whole world attracted to their 
shores. And those Peruvian warriors, who are now 
fighting the battles of their country on the plains of 
Rio de la Plata, in Chili, and on the ocean, and 
mingling with those who are in close communica- 
tion with enlightened Europeans, will return, like 
the soldiers of the Cross, to their native country, 
laden with the spoil, if not of conquest, of civiliza- 
tion and arts. 

Upper and Low Peru will, in all probability, 
return to their primitive political situation, and be 
united under the same government; and prompted 
by that spirit of rivalship, which is inherent in na- 
tions, as well as in individuals, and by the most ob- 
vious dictates of policy, they will eagerly throw 
open their numerous ports to foreign commerce, in 
order to keep pace with the rapid advance of their 
sister states, Buenos Ayres and Chili, in national 
prosperity; and with their precious metals, they 
will purchase, directly of foreign merchants, every 
thing they want, without waiting for a yard of cloth 
to reach them by travelling hundreds of miles 
across the Pampass of Buenos Ayres. And their 
harbours being more commodious than those of Chi- 
li, and their climate finer, greater attractions will be 
presented to foreign merchants, to invite them to 
their ports. 


m 


The prospect which is opening to the commer- 
cial enterprise of the United States, is of the most 
interesting character. From the proximity of the 
United States to Peru, they will he able to carry- 
on their trade with that country with far greater fa- 
cilities than any of the nations of Europe. They 
will be able to procure from Peru all the specie 
which they may want, either to supply the place of 
Bank paper, as a circulating medium, or to sustain 
its shattered credit; and to carry on, upon a more 
profitable and extended scale, their commerce with 
the East. It may surprise those who are unacquaint- 
ed with the extent of that commerce, to learn, that 
at least three millions of dollars are annually ship- 
ped to China, for the single article of tea; and that, 
from July 1817, to April 1818, five millions, seven 
hundred thousand Spanish dollars arrived in the 
porf of Canton, in American vessels. 

The precious metals can be obtained in Peru, for 
several commodities, which I am informed, can be 
exported cheaper from the United States than from 
any other nation: such as coarse cottons, ships, lea- 
ther, furniture, hats, castings, nails, carriages, and 
some other articles. Peru is not now, and will not 
soon become, a manufacturing country; its popula- 
tion is too thin, and it has other more abundant 
sources of wealth. The trade to be carried on with 
that country, therefore, will be principally in manu- 
factured goods, which command high prices.* If 
the United States shall participate in this trade, 


* The price of iron in times of peace, has been eighty and 
ninety dollars for 100 lbs. and that of steel, one hundred and 
thirty-five dollars for 100 lbs.; common writing paper, twelve 
dollars a ream; broad cloths from fifteen to twenty dollars a 
yard; velvet from six to eight; bayetas, a fine stufTlike flannel, 
from two dollars and fifty cents to five dollars a yard; hoots 
twenty-five dollars a pair; levantine s.ilks five and six dollars a 
vard. 


their manufactures will thereby be encouraged;— an 
object, no doubt, of great importance to their pros- 
perity, and which some of their best citizens have 
much at heart- And if manufactures are ever ex- 
tensively and prosperously established in the Uni- 
ted States, it will be owing to foreign, not domestic 
demand for manufactured goods; without such de- 
mand, they will never flourish, no matter how pow- 
erful the patronage, how lavish the bounties, or how 
heavy the impositions upon foreign goods. But 
aside from considerations of mercantile gain, or the 
encouragement of manufactures, the people of the 
United States have a powerful interest in establish- 
ing a close connexion with their sister republics in 
the south; the welfare of both parties calls loudly 
for such an alliance, and more especially since the 
crowned heads of Europe have made common 
cause for the stability of their thrones, and have 
formed their memorable league of legitimacy. It 
is here in the two Americas that the people, strong 
in their principles, and rich in resources, and dis- 
playing humanity and justice, constancy and cour- 
age, should erect a formidable barrier against the 
encroachments of European tyranny; it is here, that 
the proud waves of despotism should be stayed; and 
here, should be buried forever in the grave of obli- 
vion, that calamitous maxim which has been canon- 
ized for ages in Europe, that Kings rule by the 
Grace of God. 

But in America, there has been erected a monar- 
chy whose sovereign, too powerless to remain in 
Europe, was forced to flee across the Atlantic, and 
to seek for safety, and for refuge in his remote co- 
lonics; and no sooner did he set foot upon the 
shores of America, than, fired with that insatiate 
lust of conquest, which has drenched Europe with 
blood, and hung the world in mourning, he direct- 
ed his arms against an infant people, still strug- 
gling in the iron grasp of their oppressors, in or- 


173 


tier to fasten upon them the chains from which he 
had just escaped. This delirium of domination, 
which has directed all the steps of King John of 
the Brazils, has led him to desolate the fairest 
portion of the globe; but he has been taught, amid 
the thunder of cannon, and the groans of the dying, 
that the time has_ gone by, when men, who are re- 
solved to be free, can be subdued, or monarchs can 
rule by the sword; and those naked and ignorant 
men, who have been opposed on the plains of Mon- 
te Video, to soldiers inured to war, in contending 
the armies of Napoleon, have shown to the world, 
that they prefer the horrors of war to the calm of 
despotism, and death to slavery. 

The names of the gallant chiefs, who have so he- 
roically conducted to the camp of glory, an undis- 
ciplined and inexperienced multitude, to resist the 
encroachments of foreign tyrants, will be transmit- 
ted with honour to posterity; and the history of the 
revolution, when it unfolds its black pages, inscrib- 
ed with the names of the European tyrants, who 
have traversed the ocean, to deluge with the blood 
of her sons, the innocent soil of America, will at 
the same time exhibit in its most brilliant and splen- 
did pages, the names of General Rivero, and Don 
Jose Artigas, — that extraordinary man, whom na- 
ture has so prodigally gifted with genius, and who 
has so gloriously sustained himself and his country, 
amid the convulsions of intestine war, and the con- 
flicting passions of the human heart; who has been 
the stable rock of the ocean, against which the bil- 
lows of the ambition of the Brazilian, cabinet have 
beat in vain, and whose important services for his 
country must command the gratitude of his compa- 
triots, and the admiration of the world. The fame 
of the Orientals and their gallant Chiefs will be 
eternal, like the flow of their noble river, and fresh 
as the verdure of its shores. 

y 2 


m 


For that great favour conferred upon me, by Mag- 
delama the Queen, to whom I am indebted, in a 
great measure, for my present existence, as men- 
tioned in the foregoing part of this work, I feel 
myself in gratitude bound to insert the following 
pieces in honour of the fair sex, which is proven, 

THEY ARE HIGHLY WORTHY OF, INTITLED, 

THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN INVESTIGATED. 

Go to my brethren , and say unto them , I ascend 
unto my Father , and your Father ; and to my God , 
and your God. St. John, Chap. xx. 17. 

Leaving the doctrines of the Trinity, Baptisms 
and the Resurrection, in the belief of which we, all 
of us, profess to be fully established, 

1. Let us consider for a few moments to whom 
this gracious command was given. 

2. Mention a few recorded in ancient and modern 
history. 

3. The forbearance of those tried with afflictions. 

4. The respect due to the sex in general. And 
finally, make a few inquiries, do we as Christians, as 
husbands and brothers, show that respect? 

Agreeably to our plan then, we are first to inquire 
to whom this gracious command was given, “ Go to 
my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend untq my 
Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your 
God!” 

Beyond all controversy it was to a woman, and 
one too, to whom much had been forgiven: and, as 
if the Saviour had meant to employ the females as 
well as the males, in the promulgation of the gospel, 
St. Luke, the physician, tells us that she was not 
alone in this great work; Joanna also, and Mary the 
mother of James, and other women that were with 
them, having received this commission, told these 
things unto the apostles: 


175 


A 


Which brings me to the second head of our dis- 
course, namely, to point out a few of these amiable 
characters mentioned in ancient and modern history. 

I say a few only; for were I to enumerate the 
whole, figures are not sufficient to calculate, nor is 
space on our globe capable to contain those multi- 
tudes of heroines, who, like the stars of the firma- 
ment, or the sand upon the sea shore, are innumera- 
ble! Suffice it therefore, and permit me to put the 
question, not, what think ye of Christ? but what 
think ye of these women already mentioned? even 
of these who ministered to our Benefactor’s neces- 
sities, who came with him from Galilee, and after 
beholding the sepulchre, how his body was laid, 
prepared spices and ointments, and having come 
again, after having rested the sabbath-day according 
to the commandment, and bowing down their faces, 
heard a voice, saying. Why seek ye the living 
among the dead? He is not here, but is risen: re- 
member how he spake unto you when he was yet in 
Galilee. 

Can you behold, unmoved, the princess Dashkcff, 
on the assassination of Peter III, with a sabre in 
her hand, on horseback, by night in the streets of 
Petersburg, cutting her way through legions of ca- 
valry, proclaiming Catherine II empress of Russia? 

Joan of Arc, a menial servant, at the head of the 
French armies, retrieving her country from the ser- 
vile yoke of the English? 

Jael smiting Sisera? 

The wise woman throwing the head of the son of 
Bichri over the wall to Joab? 

Esther’s resolution to save her people? 

Isabella releasing Columbus from those cruel 
chains, enviously fixed by that wicked priest the 
bishop of Burgos Intendant of the second expedi- 
tion, exclaiming, while her delicate hands unloosed 


176 


the tetters from off his arms and feet, Shall the be- 
nefactor of mankind be thus treated? 

Clementina too, the consort of Clovis first king of 
the Franks, many centuries before Isabella’s day, 
when she could no otherwise prevail upon her hus- 
band to embrace Christianity, obtains a promise, on 
his greatest difficulty, he will call upon the Saviour. 
On one of his frequent excursions against his neigh- 
bouring enemies, upon his being on the point of be- 
ing entirely routed, Clovis -calls upon Clementina’s 
God, who gives him the victory! He returns — pro- 
claims himself a Christian, enjoins his subjects to 
follow his example: And thus a nation was born in 
a day! 

Do you see Aaron’s sister prophesying in the 
camp, or the holy women, in the apostles’ days, la- 
bouring with them in the gospel? Mrs. Howe, with 
many others, exclaiming, How long shall this my 
sinful body keep me from my God! 

For acts of piety might I instance Dorcas, of hu- 
manity Pharaoh’s daughter, of courage Deborah, 
and of benevolence and generosity Isabella, without 
whose assistance, neither we nor our fathers had 
ever seen the gospel dawn in America! 

Were we to consider this amiable character, un- 
der the third head of our discourse, in the field with 
her husband Ferdinand, boldly fighting against the 
Moors, whom they extirpated, and Columbus, a na- 
tive of Genoa, after two years spent m vain at the 
courts of France and London, craving an audience, 
obtained on the very evening on which the Moorish 
general was taken prisoner; however willing [ am 
to assist you, says the monarch, I am not able — 
these Moors have cutoff three-fourths of my army, 
and my coffers are nearly drained of my all: But, 
replied Isabella, as if no trial however great, could 
ever overcome her, my jewels, these my trappings 
which I consider as toys, these I pledge to defray 


177 


the expense of your great undertaking; men, ships 
and provisions, are at your command, take these* 
and may the God of armies grant you every suc- 
cess! Perhaps, in that land, if such exist, the people 
there, may in sometime to come, as we do in our 
camp here, pray to God in the open air, and sing 
the praises of an exalted Redeemer! Go, Columbus, 
go; dress and ornament are below my notice; I value 
only the endowments of the mind! 

Alike exalted in virtue and chastity, but with far 
different sensations is, alas! the situation of Lucretia: 
although we cannot approve the act, yet the case of 
such a woman deserves our tears, the case of like- 
injured innocence demands our sympathy! Hear the 
speech of Junius Brutus over her dead body. 

“ Yes, noble lady,” (holding in his hand the 
bloody dagger by which she had pierced her breast,) 
“ Yes, noble lady, I swear by this blood, which was 
once so pure, and which nothing but royal villany 
could have polluted, that I will pursue Lucius Tar- 
quinius the proud, with fire and sword; nor will I 
ever suffer any of that family, or of any other what- 
soever, to be king in Rome; ye gods, I call you to 
witness this my oath! There, Romans, turn your 
eyes to that sad spectacle — daughter of Lucretius, 
Collatinus’ wife — she died by her own hand. See 
there a noble lady, whom the lust of a Tarquin re- 
duced to the necessity of being her own executioner, 
to attest her innocence.” 

“ Hospitably entertained by her, as a kinsman of 
her husband’s, Sextus the perfidious guest, became 
her brutal ravisher. The chaste, the generous Lu- 
cretia, could not survive the insult. Glorious wo- 
man! but once only treated as a slave, she thought 
life no longer to be endured. Lucretia, a woman, 
disdained a life that depended on a tyrant’s will!” 

But how many, alas! in our own days, must en- 
dure life to bej contemptuously treated by a brutal 
husband! 


178 


Witness the adulterer, flying from the wife in 
whose tongue is the law of kindness, seducing, per- 
haps, the unsuspecting daughter of his intimate 
friend, or wallowing in uncleanness, bringing home 
with him affection to his bed! 

The drunkard too, returning home from the ta- 
vern enflamed with wine, spurns the wife of his bo- 
som from him, while she, pensive and sad, looks 
upon her little ones in want and naked, then revert- 
ing her languishing eye upon him, and with a heart 
ready to break, exclaims, alas! alas! I cannot dig, to 
beg I am ashamed; although my husband be thus 
infatuated, I love him still; although I am reviled, 
still I bless; although smitten on the one cheek, I 
turn to him the other also! 

You, our children, whom I suffuse with my tears, 
upbraid him not! The comforts 1 receive from reli- 
gion give me a hope, God will yet have mercy on 
him; and the small pittance which I do earn, keeps 
our case less desperate than the lord of \ onder ma- 
nor. While he is squandering away whole estates 
at cards, his wife, who had sometime ago, obtained 
a separate maintenance, is daily at the Pharo- table, 
deeply sunk under debts of honour and accumulated 
vice, occasioned by her husband’s perfidy and bad 
example! Their children, alas! scattered one here 
and another there, are taught forever to forget their 
parents and the God who made them! 

Touched and alarmed at this tale of wo, the chil- 
dren, while some grasp her hands, and others her 
knees, all with one voice exclaim, let this fate never 
be ours. Neither entreat us to leave you, or to re- 
turn from following after you; for whither thou 
goest, we will go; and where thou lodgest, we will 
lodge; thy people shall be our people; and thy God, 
our God; where thou diest, will we die, and there 
will we be buried: the Lord do so to us, and more 
also, if aught but death part thee and us! 


By the precepts of the gospel, carefully by you 
inculcated, and by your pious example, we too can 
rejoice in Jesus Christ our Saviour! His sufferings 
and death we can repeat by heart, as also FI is ser- 
mon on the mount; — while one cautions, judge not, 
that ye be not judged; another enjoins, let us pull 
out the beam, out of our own eyes before we disco- 
ver the mote in our papy’s: and while one with a 
heavenly accent divinely exclaims. Blessed are they 
that mourn, for they shall be comforted; the young- 
est of all, looking on his sisters, and then at his mo- 
ther, responses, Blessed are ye when men shall re- 
vile you, and persecute you, and shall say all man- 
ner of evil against you falsely, for Jesus’ sake; Re- 
joice, adds he, rejoice and be exceeding glad: for 
great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted 
they the prophets who were before you! 

Can any of you, for a moment, fancy you see this 
persecuted, but happy groupe, Jesus in the midst, 
blessing them, and say ing. Fear not, little flock, for 
it is my Father’s good pleasure to give you the 
kingdom. In consequence of keeping my words, my 
Father loves you, and now we are come unto you 
to make our abode with you. 

Here is the respect that is due to virtue! My 
peace l give unto you; not as the world giveth, give 
I unto you. Let not your hearts be troubled, nei- 
ther let them be afraid! If you are poor here, you 
shall be richer there; if you be persecuted here, you 
shall be the happier there. Be faithful unto the 
death, and I will give you, to each of you a crown 
of life! 

Do you see the little boy, with uplifted hands ex- 
claim, Who then shall ever separate us from the 
love of Christ? These outward afflictions to our 
mother, (addressing his sisters) are not grievous; 
consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, 
neither do they spin; and yet I say unto you, that 


Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one ol 
these. If then God so clothe the grass, which is to 
day in the field, and to-morrow is cast into the oven; 
how much more will he clothe us? yes, and like 
Elijah’s case, we shall receive bread and flesh in 
the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; 
like the widow’s barrel of meal, the little we have 
shall not waste: — being better instructed, we do not 
live by bread alone, but by every word which pro- 
ceedeth out of the mouth of God!— 

Our Christ, lie is the tree of life, 

Which iD God’s garden grows; 

Whose f, ait doth feed, whose leaves do heal, 

Our Christ is Sharon’s rose! 

Who then shall ever separate us from his love? 
shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or fa- 
mine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? No, in all 
these things we are more than conquerors through 
him who loved us. For I am persuaded, that nei- 
ther death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, 
nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 
nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall 
be able to separate us from the love of God, which 
is in Christ Jesus our Lord: and, 

Although the fig-tree should not blossom, neither 
should fruit be in the vine; although the labour of 
the olive should fail and the fields should yield no 
meat; and although the flocks should be cut off from 
the folds, and there should be no herd in the stalls; 
yet we will rejoice in the Lord, and joy in the God 
of our salvation: For to us to live is Christ, and to 
die is gain! 

Which brings me to the last particular in our 
plan, viz. to ask, do we as Christians, as husbands, 
as brothers, show 'that respect? 

We cannot properly appreciate the value of a 
woman, far less that of a pious sister. Could Eli 


181 


say to Hannah', while she was praying, how long 
wilt thou be drunken, put away thy wine from thee! 
or the disciples to Mary Magdalene, and the other 
women, the story of Christ’s resurrection is an idle 
tale! and shall the 

Sons of Freedom, shall the males of this deno- 
mination here, or that of any other, ever say to the 
females, Stand by, we are more holy than you! shall 
the husband ever say to his wife, as Charles XI. of 
Sweden to his consort: You came to my house for 
the purpose only of bringing me children! common 
sense forbid it! rather let the man, even the priest 
himself, lay his hand upon his breast, and pray, 
God forgive me this sin also! If I have not sinned 
against my bed, I have often, but too often rejected 
that advice and that wisdom, so far superior to my 
own; and while the gospel enjoined me to love my 
wife as Christ the church, I have looked upon al- 
most every other woman better than my first love! 

Forgetting to make a covenant with my eyes, I 
have run foolishly on from bad to worse, till now, 
even now my heart, and her forbearing, prudent, 
and affectionate conduct towards me, tell — all is al- 
ready forgiven! Why do I not therefore arise and 
go to my filial spouse, and cast myself at her feet: 
then — then should v/e go hand in hand to heaven! 
If [ performed family prayer in the morning, she 
should in the evening, ever esteeming, as is most 
true, her spiritual attainments better than my own! 

This brings me to put the question to my brethren 
in the Lord, why is it, or how is it, that our pious 
sisters do not generally bear a share jn public prayer 
and exhortation? 

It is because the Jewish as well as other women 
of the eastern nations were held in slavery? 

It is because you see that innate modesty in them, 
the consequence of a chaste mind, that you would 
have as it were to drag them into the service? Or 


182 


rather, that they having finer feelings and. deeper 
piety, you are afraid of being eclipsed in devotional 
exefcises? 

Having a better opinion of you, though I thus 
speak, your zeal calls loudly for a more rapid 
spread of the gospel; and if you are serious, as I 
doubt not, and as you have more than two thirds of 
your number as a body of reserve, (what a glorious 
reinforcement) and as they have long been panting 
after inward holiness, call them, instantly call them 
into the field of action, and, like the Sabine women, 
who threw themselves between the two contending 
armies, to effect that which the sword, or military 
tactics, could never accomplish, their prayers and 
entreaties mingled with tears, uniting with yours, 
will be productive of that good, so much the wish 
and expectation of every devout Christian! 

Like the prophet of old to Jehu, I have a mes- 
sage from God to you, O Female. Unto which of 
all of us, might be j our reply? my answer is, unto 
all the regenerated in the Lord, to all who are here, 
and to those who are far off, even to as many as the 
Lord our God shall call; — That ye put on therefore, 
as holy and beloved, the whole armour of God, be- 
ing girt about with truth, and having on the breast- 
plate of righteousness — let j our feet be shod with 
the preparation of the gospel of peace, taking the 
shield of faith wherewith ye shall be able to quench 
all the fierj 7 darts of the wicked, the helmet of sal- 
vation also, and the sword of the spirit, which is the 
word of God; praying always with all prayer and 
supplication in the spirit: thus armed, 

Call upon sinners, call aloud, sinners, turn, why 
will you die? as you proclaim, The power of the 
Lord — The power of the Lord, and the unsearcha- 
ble riches of Christ. The wings of love and arms of 
faith will bear you conqueror through; having a 
single eye to the glory of God, your labours will b? 


183 


abundantly blessed! the pleasure of the Lord shall 
prosper in your hands. Your pastors, and your hus- 
bands, at least all they who are alive to God, will 
rejoice, they will be workers together with you in 
the great work of calling in, and building up in the 
most holy faith. 


A REMARKABLE CIRCUMSTANCE. 

Among my numerous travels, as I was one day 
riding along the banks of the North River, which 
leads from the city of New York, to the city of Al- 
bany, near to a small town known by the name of 
Canterhook, I was much alarmed by the most pierc- 
ing shrieks and cries, apparently of a woman in 
distress. This lamentation appeared to me to sound 
from about the middle of the river, which at that 
part of it, was said to be some better than one mile 
wide. Those lamentable cries, as I thought so 
much implored my assistance, that I immediately 
jumped down and tied my horse’s bridle to the limb 
of a tree, and steered across the river on the ice, 
towards where the sound seemed to come from. 
The nigher I got to this dreadful scene of misery, 
the more my anxiety prompted me to get nearer; 
and in a short time arrived in full view of a beauti- 
ful young gentleman and his sister, who were on a 
visit to their relatives in the city of Albany, riding- 
in a sleigh drawn by a couple of fine horses on the 
ice, and had unfortunately broke through what is 
called a spring-tide in the river: these elegant fine 
horses were plunging up and down, sometimes on 
great cakes of ice, and other times off them, so that 
?he poor horses being so much cut with the ice, 


18 * 4 ; 


that the water appeared like a river of blood. And 
the sleigh in which these young couple were in, was 
wonderfully tossed too and fro. So much overjoy- 
ed was this couple at my appearing, that, said the 
young lady to her brother, we are not lost yet I 
hope. For thanks be to the most high, he has sent 
us a saviour; O! my beloved friend, said site, exert 
your most noble powers, and save our lives, and 
you shall for this noble act, have any ransom you 
require: be of good courage, said I, until I return 
back to the other side of the river; where I per- 
ceived, when hitching my horse, a house where I 
hope to obtain assistance, and get you both out of 
that miserable gulf as soon as possible. These con- 
soling speeches rendered this distressed pair, the 
most glowing hopes of immediate relief. As soon 
as I arrived at the house of destination, I related to 
the family that dreadful scene of misery which I 
had just been a w itness of, and told them in such a 
mournful case, to grant me all the assistance in their 
power. But all that was about the house, adequate 
to such an enterprise, was a young man about nine- 
teen years of age, who seemed quite willing to go 
with me; and as I had my mind made up in order 
to effect the business, I discovered, standing against 
the house, a twenty-foot pine plank. Now, said I to 
the young man, this long board with our economy, 
will be sure to effect our undertaking. And so we 
shouldered the plank, and were soon, but not too 
soon, at the scene of distress, where we were long 
looked for by the languishing eyes of these dying 
pair: I then gave them another word of consolation, 
saying, be of good' comfort my lovely creatures, for 
be assured that with the assistance of Divine Pro- 
vidence, we will have you both out of your present 
difficulty, and in yonder comfortable asylum in less 
than fifteen minutes. Taking hold of the plank, and 
sliding it on the ice till we got one end of it on the 


185 


sleigh which was afloat in the great hole that was 
in the ice, and the other end of it on the sound ice, 
now said I to this young man, obey my orders 
strictly through this enterprise, and I’ll warrant you 
we will gain our desired point. As I am determin- 
ed, said I, to risk my life with the assistance of the 
great One, in saving of theirs. I then ordered this 
man to sit on the end of the board that was on the 
sound ice, this done, I crawled along the board till 
I got within reach of the young woman, who was 
almost stiff; I took hold of her by the petticoat-bind- 
ing, and with great ease, as I was predetermined, 
got her on the plank. Then said I to the young 
man, pull the plank gently to you — and directly he 
had us both on the sound ice. Then said I, will 
you in like manner, get this lady’s brother on the 
plank? but he was afraid to enter. I then found I 
must go through with the whole. So far that I got 
the brother of this young lady, also on the sound 
ice along side of his sister. Then came a gentleman 
with a sleigh and horses, in which we were drove 
with expedition, to the house where I obtained my 
assistance in the above enterprise. I being some- 
what skilled in the nature of frozen hands, or feet, 
I immediately adopted a plan which proved in a 
little time, an excellent remedy for this present 
complaint; which was a quantity of snow melted — 
hot hickery wood ashes put into that, and a double 
handful of allum salt stirred well through the whole. 
Then divided this preparation into two tubs, one 
for each of the frozen pair, and got their feet and 
legs into it as hot as they could bear it, and em- 
ployed persons to bathe and rub them for one hour, 
in which time they had revived wonderfully, at 
which sight I was more rejoiced seemingly, than if 
I had the whole universe at my command. 

Heavens be praised, this is the brightest morning 1 
gdf my life, O what a happy period, when 1 first heard 
0.2 


186 


even at a distance, the lamentation of this fortun- 
ate pair. 

After those couple were well recruited, and re- 
sumed their former lovely appearance again, they 

f jroposed making us a present of two hundred dol- 
ars each, but I thanked them kindly, adding that it 
was not for the sake of money I had performed the 
act, but for sake of saving life, which is dear and 
precious to every individual of the human family. 
Those two youthful creatures were the children of 
a William Preston, Esq. who had been lately 
from the city of Charleston, South Carolina, on a 
visit to friends in the city of New York. The young 
gentleman was, he said, twenty-two years of age, 
and his sister seventeen, who appeared to be 
brought up in t,he first style, and as beautiful a pair 
as I have seen since their departure. 

So may every person, who has it in their power 
as I had, exert their best abilities in extricating 
their fellow creatures from such an impending dan- 
ger, for they that are instrumental in saving the 
life of any person on this spacious globe; it is to be 
hoped by such noble acts of humanity that they will 
gain everlasting life in that world where misfor- 
tunes and misery, dwelleth not. 

SHARON. 


After having given the public as full a detail of the 
history of South America as my limits would 
permit, 1 shall again return to Magdelama the 
queen, and make my conclusion. 

I then took my departure from these Indian chiefs, 
with a heart, you might suppose, pretty cheerful, 
and soon arrived at the Haunted Caverns, where I 
was kindly received by Magdelama and her family, 
who seemed to rejoice very much at my success. 


187 


After spending some time in those delightful man* 
sions, and taking the last survey of every curiosity 
which those extensive caverns produced, I express- 
ed a desire of taking my departure to some other 
clime in order to seek a new adventure, and try 
’ whether or no I might have the good fortune of 
meeting with my old companion Mr. Smith, who 
had gone off to the United States, under the ex- 
pectation of my being executed amongst the In- 
dians, and lest if he stayed to see the result, it 
might be also his unfortunate case. There was 
seemingly the greatest lamentations imaginable for 
my departure, between Magdelama and her family; 
she made use of numerous solicitations to me in 
order that I should tarry a few days longer with 
her, as she once more longed to hear another small 
detail of my adventures; having lost my companion 
and fellow traveller, Smith, I agreed to gratify her 
curiosity. 

One day, about four o’clock in the afternoon, as 
I was walking for the benefit of the fresh air, I 
being on an eminence of ground which commanded 
an advantageous view of both sea and land, 1 there 
sat down to contemplate with pleasure the various 
objects which lay before me. The woods were 
dressed in their verdure, the thickets adorned with 
the gayest blossoms, the birds carolled beneath the 
branches, the lambs frolicked around the meads, 
the peasant whistled at his team, and the ships 
moved by gentle gales, were returned into their 
harbours. The arri\ al of spring had enlivened the 
whole face of nature, and every object yielded a 
display either of beauty or happiness. But to my 
surprise, this lovely scene was suddenly changed 
into a violent storm; the winds collected all their 
fury, and whole forests of lofty trees were in a little 
time torn out of root, by the fury of the hurricane, 
and scattered over the ground. Darkness succeed- 


188 


ed, hail-stones and rain were poured down in abuu 
dance, lightning and thunder added horror to the 
gloom. And now the sea, piled up in mountains, 
bore aloft the largest vessels; while the uproar of 
its waves drowned the cries of the wretched ma- 
riners. When the tempest had exhausted its rage, 
it was instantly followed by the shock of an earth- 
quake. The poor inhabitants of the neighbouring 
villages flocked in crowds to this cavern, where 
they had heard I remained so long, fully convinced 
that my apparent sanctity would protect them in 
their distress. They were not a little surprised at 
the profound tranquillity which they said appeared 
in my countenance. “ My friends, said I, be not 
dismayed, for terrible to me as well as to you would 
have been this war of elements, but I have medi- 
tated with attention on the various works of Provi- 
dence, and I rest secure that the goodness of that 
mighty one is equal to his power.” 

After some time, to the unspeakable joy and 
satisfaction of all those that were but a little time 
previous so much alarmed and terrified, the above 
dreadful scene was subsided, and the sky seemed 
to resume its former state of serenity; the splendid 
and brilliant beams of the sun, seemed universally 
to revive the face of nature. 

In making a feeble attempt to give a display of 
the magnificence and power of the Sun, I com- 
mence as follows: — Resplendent orb! whose diffu- 
sive, and never failing rays, illuminate the regions 
of immeasurable space! Celestial Lamb! Whose 
fires “ have burned without ceasing, before the face 
of thy Creator, since the formation of all visible 
worlds! Bright star of day! the view of thy glories 
has kindled in my heart the most profound respect! 
my thoughts, elevated above every terrene object, 
fly upwards, and mix with thy pure, thy unexhaust- 
ed elemental fire, and even dart into the bosom of 


189 


thy massive light! there in the centre of the uni- 
verse, in the heart of the creation, sparkling with 
luminous worlds, my ravished soul prostrates itself 
in adoring the mighty conqueror of all things, 
whose sovereign will produces order from confu- 
sion, and wonders from nothing. Then, as over- 
come with a too near and bold approach, I return, 
to contemplate thy milder, distant glories, from this 
earthly spot. 

O Sun! or by whatever name thou art called by 
thy Creator! source of inexhaustible light! great 
parent, and delegated giver of health and life! how 
numerous are the worlds which roll round thy im- 
mense, thy shining orb! how many millions who 
inhabit these spheres, bask in thy beams, and re- 
joice in the blessings they bestow, and for whose 
use they shall doubtless, be called one day to give 
an account! happy he! amongst them, who has en- 
joyed and communicated to others the benefits thou 
dost confer! but wo to the man who shall have de- 
prived a fellow mortal of the least of those gifts, 
which the creator perpetually diffuses through the 
medium of thy influence! bright image of thy great 
fine author! like him thou bestowest thy blessings 
on the whole human race! like him thou dost con- 
duct the traveller on his journey through this lower 
world; and like him in an inferior degree, thou 
dazzlest the weak eyes of man with the splendour 
of thy beauties, as forbidding to pry into secrets 
which they are unworthy to explore! father of nature 
and love! both love and nature, rejoice in thy light, 
and kindle from thy vivifying rays, those fires with 
which the universe is impregnated. 

Parent of day! thou despiseth the dark shades, 
with which sight envelopes all visible things! at thy 
appearance her sable curtain is withdrawn, and all 
nature adorned with thy beauty! thy triumphant 
fires penetrate her deepest recesses, and fertilize 


every atom of inert and animal matter. All that 
vegetate or respire on earth, in air or water, exist 
only by thy influence. Those insects indeed, which 
flutt r in thy li^ht, live but for a moment; they 
perish, but still continue to shine.” Returning from 
a reverie, which dazzles my senses, I cast my eves 
towards a transparent .cloud, floating in the atmos- 
phere, under a thousand strange forms. 

I then take a view of the immoveable mountains, 
that have for so many ages beheld the splendour of 
the day, and the dark shadows of night passing over 
their tops, whilst generations of men and animals 
have successfully arisen and disappeared at their 
feet: I have beheld the king of stars, the great 
fountain of light, rise every morning, at a precise 
moment, in which he has never failed since the 
creation of the universe. I have also seen the celes- 
tial spheres, rolling their immense orbits, in a regu- 
lated course, through the regions of incommensu- 
rable space. I have seen millions of beings govern- 
ed by various instincts, and man, as their chief, 
walking alone, in the path of moral rectitude. I 
then said, sure there is order in the universe, and 
the heart of man is replenished with the seed of 
vice and virtue. 

But when I perceive, amidst the tumults of this 
busy world, so many slaves to prejudice; mere ten- 
nis-balls to the caprices of fortune, and the impulse 
of ambitious views, torturing themselves for the most 
trivial objects; I withdrew from the senseless mul- 
titude, and endeavour to find in retirement, that 
sweet peace and serenity of mind, from whence 
they are continually flying on with pleasure, listen 
to the voice of nature, contemplate her various 
beauties, and experience those ravishing emotions, 
those lovely ideas, which she never fails to excite 
In her real admirers. 


191 


My heart contracted and oppressed, amidst the 
throng of mankind, expands in a view of the fields, 
to enjoy the pure air, which on this beautiful rural 
spot of eminence is most purely to be had. The 
sun’s bright rays, the refreshing shade, the rich 
bounties of the harvest, the fragrance, and beauty 
of the fields, meadows, and their productions, all 
conspire to enchant the ravished scene. 

On beholding these objects, alangour, more genial 
and delightful than sleep, lulls my senses; every 
thing appears as in prospective, and presents to my 
heavy eyes, a confused and obscure image that to- 
tally vanishes. I no longer hear or see; an inward 
sensation of sweet tranquillity occupies my entire 
being. I live in a kind of unconscious existence, and 
as it were, sunk into a mere passive composure, in- 
dependent of every sense. 

A ray of the sun now darts oh the visual organ, 
,and by its warm and luminous qualities restores my 
suspended sight, a sentiment of existence returns, 
and like the smile of beauty on the heart of a lover, 
reanimates the whole man. I again behold the faii> 
sky, the rich orchards, and the flowery plains. I re- 
flect with transport, I breathe with ease and delight. 

What enchanting sound now strikes my ravished 
ear! — it is the voice of my amiable Susan, who was 
most as dear to me as life itself: methinks I see 
her sitting under the shade of a spreading tree sing- 
ing the pleasures of a happy union, formed by mu- 
tual love. The tender spouse listens, and while I 
traced with distracted ideas, the banks of the rive? 
that wanders through these flowery meadows, my 
eyes stole glances on this beauteous fair, filled with 
the most passionate regard. The chattering of birds, 
their amorous cries, their cooing, their caresses, re- 
call to us, happy pair, the idea of our first love. O! 
the memory of that virtuous fair shall never slip 
my mind while I exist on this spacious earth. 


192 


Amidst my contemplations in the sweet studies 
of nature and arts, a thought has just struck me to 
Say something concerning the memory of my de- 
ceased father, who so long has lain in the cold 
clay of forgetfulness. His expanded heart wished 
the happiness of every creature; and we the objects 
of his great regard, should commemorate even his 
ashe9, until time is no more. O! then let us, his sons 
and daughters, recal the memory of our worthy fa- 
ther, and be grateful to his sensibility; let us dedi- 
cate some new devices to his remembrance. Let 
us uncover the hives which our bees will fill with 
the spoils of the gardens and fields. Let that white 
lamb be put to its mother’s bosom. Let us make 
chaplets of the jasmine and rose, mixed with sprigs 
of flowering broom. Let us pluck roses and place 
them in our breasts: and the rose shall perfume the 
bosom of the young shepherdesses. Let us also re- 
spire the odours of the flowery broom, the jasmine, 
and the rose; and let us be penetrated with their 
sweets. I he most lovely of the shepherdesses shall 
place those flowers at the foot of his grave, on 
which a solar ray of the sun smiles. And let her 
say with us, “ charming flowers! unite now, your 
most delicious odours — give them to be absorbed 
by that bright ray that darts through the branches 
of that spreading tree.” May all these pleasures 
unite in one delicious sensation, as the distinct 
odours of these flowers give one entire perfume. — 
And as this fragrancy exhales into the solar ray, so 
may the pure and sweet sensation descend into the 
body underneath. “ O sensible soul! who in distant 
time bestowed friendly thoughts on all.” Let us 
also say together, — “ Benevolent offspring of hea- 
ven! universal love, which fills the soul with tender 
ecstasy, far above the pleasure of sense. 

Waft to that soul, these effusions of our hearts. 
And my loving brothers and sisters, and all my 


193 


loving playmates and companions in youth, may we 
boast more intellectually present and join in our 
former partialities of friendship, the follies of love, 
and all the gay trifles which smooth our passage 
through the dream of life. And my aged mother 
that is still living at the date of this book. May 
she find comfort in this life, and eternal happiness 
in that which is to come, hope, daughter of heaven! 
witness of innocence and virtue! go on as you have 
done, until you are called from this terestrial globe 
to the world of spirits, in that celestial heaven of 
heavens.^’ I trust you will receive an ample com- 
pensation for all your good deeds done in the flesh, 
in that comfortable asylum, where we all hope for 
eternal rest. 

May the above lines impress the mind of the 
youthful reader, with duty to parents, a love and 
esteem for brothers and sisters, a kind and benevo- 
lent heart to the poor, and a universal love and ve- 
neration for all the human family. 


TO MISS ANN MARIA SHARON, 

SIX TEARS OLD. 

Sweet blossom, opening to the beams of day; 
Dear object of affection’s tender care! 

For when she gently smooths the painful way, 
Inspires the anxious wish, the ardent prayer! 

How pleasing in thy infant mind to trace 
The dawn of reason’s force, of fancy’s fire, 

The soft impression of each future grace, 

And all a parent’s warmest hopes desire! 

How sweet that smile, unknown to every art, 
Inspired by innocence, and peace, and joy! 

How pure the transports of thy guiltless heart, 
Which yet no fears alarm, no cares annoy! 

R 


194 


No airy phantoms of uncertain wo 
The blessings of the present hour allay; 

No empty hopes a fancied good bestow, 

Then leave the soul to real grief a prey. 

Gay pleasures sparkle in thy gentle eye, 

Some new delight in every scene appears, 

Yet soft affection heaves a secret sigh, 

And sends an anxious wish to distant years. 

While those dear smiles with tender love I view, 
And o’er thy infant charms enraptured bend, - 
Does my fond hop&a real good pursue? 

And hope these arms to embrace a future friend. 

Thy father oft the sport of fortune's been, 

By land and sea. through many a dreadful scene. 
Afflicted much with sickness, pain, and want, 
Which keeps me from the heavenly place you haunt- 

But should heaven to me a lengthen’d date assign, 
I hope to dwell with me you will incline, 

With friendship’s purest flame both still engage. 
And charm the languor of declining age. 

May innocence still guard thy artless youth, 

Ere vice and folly’s snares thy breast alarm, 

While sweetness, modesty, and spotless truth, 
Beam from thy soul, and brighten every charm. 

May heaven to you her choicest gifts impart, 
Beyond what wealth bestows, or pride pursues, 

May every virtue animate your heart, 

And raise your efforts to the noblest views. 

In transport wrapt may each fond parent see, 
Through rising years, those virtues still improve, 
While every tender care now felt for thee, 

Your heart repays with never ceasing love. 


THE FOLLOWING ARE MOST APPLICABLE TO MY CHE- 
QUERED LIFE. 

Remote, unfriended, melancholy, slow, 

Or by the lazy Scheld or wandering Po; 


195 


Or onward, where the rude Corinthian boqr 
Against the houseless stranger shuts the door; 

Or where Campania’s plain forsaken lies, 

A weary waste expanding to the skies — 

Where’er 1 roain, whatever realms to see, 

My heart, untravelled, fondly turns to thee — 

Still to my brother turns with ceaseless pain, 

And drags, at each remove, a lengthening chain. 

Eternal blessings crown my earliest friend, 

And round bis dwelling guardian saints attend; 

Blest be that spot, where cheerful guests retire 
To pause from toil, and trim their evening fire; 

Blest that abode where want and pain repair, 

And every stranger finds a ready chair; 

Blest be those feasts with simple plenty crown’d 

W'here all the ruddy family around 

Laugh at the jests or pranks which never fail, 

Or sigh with pity at some mournful tale; 

Or press the bashful stranger to his food, 

And learn the luxury of doing good. 

But me, not destined such delights to share, 

My prime of life in wandering spent and care — 
Impell’d with steps unceasing to pursue 
Some fleeting good that mocks me with the view, 

That, like the circle bounding earth and skies, 

Allures from far, yet, as I follow, flies; 

My fortune leads to traverse realms alone, 

And find no spot of all the world my own. 

Even now, where Alpine solitudes ascend, 

I sit me down a pensive hour to spend; 

And, placed on high above the storm’s career, 

Look downward where an hnndred realms appear, 
Lakes, forests, cities, plains extending wide, 

The pomp of kings, the shepherd’s humbler pride. 

When thus creation’s charms around combine, 
Amidst the store should thankless pride repine? 

Say, should the philosophic mind disdain 

The good which makes each humbler bosom vain? 

Let school-taught pride dissemble all it can, 

These little things are great to little man; 

And wiser he whose sympathetic mind 
Exults in all the good of all mankind. 

Ye glittering towns, with wealth and splendour crown’d, 
Ye fields, where summer spreads profusion round, 

Ye lakes, whose vessels catch the busy gale, 

Ye bending swains, that dress the flowery vale, 


196 


For me your tributary stores combine — 

Creation’s tenant, all the world is mine. 

• 

As some lone miser, visiting his store, 

Bends at his treasure, counts, recounts it o’er*, 
Hoards after hoards his rising raptures till, 

Yet still he sighs, for hoards are wanting still; 

Thus in my breast alternate passions rise, 

Pleas’d with each good that Heaven to man supplies; 
Yet oft a sigh prevails, and sorrows fall, 

To see the sum of human bliss so small; 

And oft I wish, amidst the scene to find 
Some spot to real happiness consign’d, 

Where my worn soul, each wand’ring hope at rest, 
May gather bliss to see my fellows blest. 

But where to find that happiest spot below, 

Who can direct when all pretend to know? 

The shudd’ring tenant of the frigid zone 
Boldly proclaims that happiest spot his own, 

Extols the treasures of his stormy seas, 

And his long night of revelry and ease: 

The naked negro, panting at the line, 

Boasts of his golden sands and palmy wine. 

Basks in the glare, or stems the torpid wave. 

And thanks his gods for all the good they gave 
Nor less the patriot’s boast — where’er he roam, 

His first, best country ever is at home. 

And yet perhaps, if countries we compare, 

And estimate the blessings which they share, 

Tho’ patriots flatter, still shall wisdom find 
An equal portion dealt to all mankind ■ 

As different good, by art or nature given 
To different nations, makes their blessings even 

Nature, a mother, kind alike to all, 

Still grants her bliss at labour’s earnest call. 

With food as well the peasant is supplied 
On Idra’s cliffs as Arno’s shelvy side: 

And tho’ the rocky-crested summits frown, 

These rocks, by custom, turn to beds of down. 

From art more various are the blessings sent — 
Wealth, commerce, honour, liberty, content — 

Yet those each other’s power so strong contest, 

That either seems destructive of the rest. 

Where wealth and freedom reign contentment fails 
And honour sinks where commerce long prevails. 
Hence every state, to one lov’d blessing prone, 
Conforms and models life to that alone, 

Each to the favourite happiness attends, 

And spurns the plan that aims at other ends: 


/ 


197 


Till carried to excess in each domain, 

This favourite good begets peculiar pain. 

But let us try these truths with closer eyes, 

And trace them through the prospect as it lies, 

Here for a while, ray proper cares resign’d, 

Here let me sit in sorrow for mankind ; 

Like yon neglected shrub, at random cast, 

That shades the steep, and sighs at every blast, 

Far to the right, where Appennine ascends, 
Bright as the summer, Italy extends. 

Her uplands sloping deck the mountain’s side, 
Woods over woods in gay theatric pride — 

While oft some temple’s mould’ring tops between 
With venerable grandeur mark the scene. 

Could nature’s bounty satisfy the breast, 

The sons of Italy were surely blest. 

Whatever fruits in various climes are found, 

That proudly rise or humbly court the ground; 
Whatever blooms in torrid tracts appear, 

Whose bright succession decks the varied year; 
Whatever sweets salute the northen sky 
With vernal leaves, that blossom but to die — 
These, here disporting, own the kindred soil, 

Nor ask luxuriance from the planter’s toil; 

While sea-borne gales their gelid wings expand 
To winnow fragrance round the smiling land. 

But small the bliss that sense alone bestows, 

And seusual bliss is all this nation knows. 

In florid beauty groves and fields appear — 

Man seems the only growth that dwindles here, 
Contrasted faults through all his manners reign; 

Tho’ poor, luxurious — tho’ submissive, vain; 

Tho’ grave, yet trifling — zealous, yet untrue; 

And even in penance, planning sins anew. 

All evils here contaminate the mind, 

That opulence departed leaves behind. 

For wealth was theirs — not far removed the date 
When commerce proudly flourish’d through the state, 
At her command the palace learnt to rise; 

Again the long-fallen column sought the skies; 

The canvas glowed, beyond even nature warm 
The pregnant quarry teem’d with human form; 

But more unsteady than the southern gale, 

Soon commerce turned to other shores her sail: 

While nought remained of all that riches gave, 

But towns unmann’d, and lords without a slave, 

R 2 


198 


And late the nation found, with fruitless skill, 

Its former strength was but plethoric ill. 

Yet still the loss of wealth is here supply’d 
By arts, the splendid wrecks of former pride; 

From these the feeble heart and long-fallen mind 
An easy compensation seem to fiud. 

Here may be seen, in bloodless pomp array’d, 

The pasteboard-triumph and the cavalcade: 
Processions form’d for piety and love, 

A mistress or a saint in every grove. 

By sports like these are all their cares beguiled—^ 

The sports of children satisfy the child, 

Each nobler aim, represt by long control, 

Now sinks at last, or feebly mans the soul; 

While low delights, succeeding fast behind, 

In happier meanness occupy the mind. 

As in those domes where Caesars once bore sway, 
Defaced by time, and tottering in decay, 

There in the ruin, heedless of the dead, 

The shelter seeking peasant builds his shed; 

And, wondering man could want the larger pile, 
Exults, and owns his cottage with a smile. 

My soul, turn from them — turn we to survey 
Where rougher climes a nobler race display — 
Where the bleak Swiss their stormy mansions tread, 
And force a churlish soil for scanty bread; 

No product here the barren hills. afford, 

But man and steel, the soldier and his sword. 

No vernal blooms their torpid rocks array, 

But winter, lingering in the lap of May; 

No zephyr fondly sues the mountain’s breast, 

But meteors glare, and stormy glooms invest. 

Yet still even here, content can spread a charm, 
Redress the clime, and all its rage disarm. 

Tho’ poor the peasant’s hut, bis feast tho’ small, 

He sees his little lot the lot of all; 

Sees no contiguous palace rear its head, 

To shame the meanness of his humble shed; 

No costly lord the sumptuous banquet deal, 

To make him loathe his vegetable meal; 

But calm, and bred in ignorance and toil, 

Each wish contracting fits him to the soil, 

Cheerful at morn, he wakes from short repose, 
Breathes the keen air, and carols as he goes, 

\\ ith patient angle trolls the finny deep, 

Or drives his vent'rous ploughshare to the steep; 

Or seeks the den where snow-tracks mark the way, ' 
And drags the struggling savage into day. 


199 


At night returning, every labour sped. 

He sits him down the monarch of a shed; 
Smiles by his cheerful fire, and round' surveys 
His children’s looks, that brighten at the blaze; 
While his lov’d partner, boastful of her hoard, 
Displays her cleanly platter on the board; 

And haply too some pilgrim, thither led, 

With many a tale repays the nightly bed. 

Thus every good his native wilds impart, 
Imprints the patriot passion on his heart; 

And even those ills that round his mansion rise. 
Enhance the bliss his scauty fund supplies: 

Dear is that shed to which his soul conforms, 
And dear that hill which lifts him to the storms; 
And as a babe, when scaring sounds molest, 
Clings close and closer to the mother’s breast. 
So the loud torrents and the whirlwind’s roar 
But bind him to his native mountains more. 




THE BEAUTIES OF NATURE. 

Being one night about the hour of twelve, in my 
travels in South America, overtaken by a hail storm 
accompanied by thunder and lightning, which 
compelled me with all possible expedition, to re- 
pair to the clift of a rock for shelter; I there lay in 
a state of disconsolation, till the ensuing morning, 
much fatigued and bewildered. 

There, — to my pensive thought, a wide desert 
extends its dreary surface, topped with disjointed 
rocks, crusted with flint and the spoils of winter 
floods. On these decaying mountains, some insula- 
ted peaks arise, as melancholy witnesses of their 
former height, and venerable antiquity. Time, rest- 
ing on these ruins, seems to proclaim to man, proud 
of the monuments of his ancestors, — Here stood the 
mouitfains, and here they are interred. 


200 


Above the summits of these mighty hills, I see 
sharp and spiral crags arise, on whose bleak tops are 
formed, and increased, from age to age, those daz- 
zling masses of snow and ice, whose elevation and 
magnitude render them impervious to the sun’s 
rays. They feel not his influence, and defy his 
power. 

What hollow and rumbling noise, like subterra- 
neous thunders, assaults my ear! The earth trem- 
bles, rocks roll, and undulates, opens, and its part- 
ing sides discover abysses unfathomable, and horrid! 
Men, animals, trees, towns, palaces and cots, are 
ingulfed in the hideous vortex; and fresh genera- 
tions inhabit the ruins of the former. Islands dis- 
appear, whilst new ones rise from the bosom of the 
ocean. Some volcanos are extinguished, and others 
blaze out. Torrents of burning lava, overspread the 
fields; and man plants the vine, the olive and the 
palm-tree, on the cold stratum of these once-liquid 
fires. The ground shakes again, and men, with their 
plantations, sink together, in the opening gulf. 

But war, still more terrible than volcanos, de- 
stroys with fire and sword; and levels nations, ci- 
ties, arts and sciences, in one common ruin. From 
its devouring bosom, issue cruelty and murder; and 
fell despotism, crowned with a plumed casque, and 
bearing in its hand a sword, stained with blood, sits 
proudly on heaps of dead and dying fellow-crea- 
tures. The infernal tyrant strikes, crushes, and lays 
every thing prostrate at his feet. He then, in his 
turn, shakes, tumbles, and is buried under the ruins 
of his abhorred and merciless throne. 

A brave and generous people flourish under the 
standard of a wise government, and a free consti- 
tution. The earth seems renewed by their trium- 
phant hands. A nation, oppressed by tyranny and 
debased by servitude, bends under the galling yoke. 


201 


They pass in a decrepid state to the rule of new 
masters, and at length disappear in the dust of time. 

There, — in the dark bosom of the forests, which 
once overspread the face of the country, the ancient 
oaks, the caves, the rocks resounded with the lying 
oracles of pagan imposture. Error propagated and 
begat gods of various orders and degrees; victims 
bled, and the entrails of innocence smoaked before 
their altars. Ignorant and infatuated priests, chaunt- 
ed the wisdom and justice of these imaginary be- 
ings; and Pontiffs, ventured to dispute the points of 
dignity and prerogative, with the mighty rulers of 
the day. — The daggers of superstition and fanata- 
cism glittered around idols of wood and stone. Sys- 
tems, religions, empires, and laws rose, and were 
succeeded by others. 

Amidst this chaos of the moral and intellectual 
worlds, my distracted mind seeks ease, in its re- 
searches after truth. I invoke the God of nature— 
I listen — I hear, as if transported to former ages, 
the grateful hymns, the solemn worship paid by the 
first race of mankind, to the benevolent Creator. I 
hear nature dictate her unerring precepts. “ Be just, 
be good, be merciful! Be all you can, and you shall 
be happy!” 

The wise man lays up these holy laws in the trea- 
sury of his heart. He pursues the plain path of jus- 
tice, and finds his reward in the peaceful enjoyment 
of all that nature can bestow; on the contrary, the 
senseless multitude are deaf to her voice, and even 
stifle any virtuous emotions derived from the foun- 
tain of truth. The depraved man, disdaining to par- 
take of the good things, which his native soil offers 
in abundance, dares to traverse unknown seas, to 
rob the people of distant lands; carrying from clime 
to clime, vices, slavery, devastation and death. 

While man thus ravages the earth, it travels be- 
tween the tropics, and turning every day on its own 


202 


axis, pursues its annual course around the sun. It 
is clothed with waters, forests, deserts, harvests, 
flowers and verdure. Calm and tempest, summer 
and winter, day and night, alternately smile or 
frown, as they succeed each other in passing over 
its surface. Unruly elements declare war, and dis- 
pute the empire of the air and seasons in its terri- 
tories. All things change, but order, immutable or- 
der, remains as fixed as the pillars of Heaven. Like 
a wise monarch, it sits quietly on the delegated, 
throne, and rules and reigns over every vicissitude, 
whose excesses it restrains, and whose action it di- 
rects, preserving the equilibrium of nature, regulat- 
ing the movement of the earth, and revolutions of 
the celestial orbs. 

My soul, refined and sublimated by the contem- 
plation of these wonderful objects, falls prostrate in 
silence, before their Creator, whose mighty fiat pro- 
duced regularity from confusion, and existence from 
nothing. I adore the God of order; and my soul 
seems to die — to shrink into annihilation, before 
the Omnipotent Sovereign of heaven, earth, and 
millions of worlds, rolling in the immensity of space. 
But, away with that impious thought! Revere vir- 
tue, and avoid, for the future, such horrid applica- 
tions to thyself. 

Consider, that he who has lived in vain, is blotted 
from the bobk of life; that he, who has committed 
evil, must expiate by suffering; but the just man 
shall arise, renewed and be happy, in a never-ending 
state of glorious existence. 

Unchangeable Being! who holdest the balances 
of good and evil in thy mighty hands! Who, from 
the highest heaven, pourest the bitterness of re- 
morse, and the grace of repentance, into that of the 
just! Great Ruler of Nature! Thou dost permit 
some feeble rays to shine on poor mortals, from the 
effulgency of that abode, where truth and justice, in 


203 


union with thee, forever reign! But nature, whom 
thy hand has adorned with so much beauty, con- 
tinually attracts our regards, and wins our hearts. 

Stars! Sun! and immeasurable vault of heaven’s 
expanse! my soul is elevated, enlarged, aggrandized, 
in contemplating your wonders. 

Great ocean! fertile earth! Mountains, hillocks, 
rivers, and meadows! I view you with astonishment 
and delight! 

Smiling flowers! gaudy butterflies! industrious 
bees! amorous birds! tender children of nature! Your 
delicious odours, your innocent pleasures penetrate 
my heart, and inspire congenial sensations. I re- 
spire, — I live — I vegetate with you. How ravish- 
ing these emotions! How calm! how consoling are 
these delights! 

Omnipotent Power! who fillest my soul with 
these pure, these transporting sensations. Thou! 
who unfoldest the embrio of life and happiness, in 
every point of indeterminate space! and thou, great 
nature, mother of mankind, and daughter of the 
most High! receive my profoundest homage! Thou 
art the gracious, permanent effect of his wisdom and 
power, the organ of his justice, and the instrument 
of his mercy! All things respire in thy bosom, as 
from a fruitful womb, they come forth to instinct, 
and existence. 

Thy kind, thy comprehensive arms embrace the 
whole world, and thy wings overshadow and pro- 
tect the birds of the air, the beasts of the forest, and 
the fishes of the sea. Inspired by thy genial warmth, 
they unite, they multiply, and each day gives birth 
to a new and living world. 

Whilst legions of beings are receiving organs, 
instincts, cloathing, and perfection, at thy bountiful 
hand; and fulfil the law s of their existence: whilst 
man, walking by the light of reason, pursues the 
bright paths of moral rectitude, thou loadest the 


204 


earth with harvests, herbs and flowers, and the trees 
with delicious fruits, for the sustenance and plea- 
sures of all. 

Sometimes, thou spreadest a magnificent scarf, 
formed of those ever-changing clouds which bound 
the horizon, painted by numberless refractions of 
the sun’s rays. Again thou collectest them in a con- 
densed group, to shed fertility on our fields. The 
waters of heaven refresh the mountains, the mea- 
dows, and the corn lands; invigorating the seed, 
and meliorating the barren soil. 

Animals come forth from their retreats, to breathe 
a new air; man lifts up his grateful eyes to heaven, 
for the seasonable refreshment, and thou showest 
him thy bow of many colours, magnificently stretch- 
ed in the immense vault of heaven, thy royal arch, 
whose various beauties the sun burnishes with his 
finest gold, to adorn this diadem of the earth. 

Sailing on the bosom of the air hanging in the 
midst of worlds, our globe beholds the bright star 
of day, the pale ruler of night, the signs of heaven, 
and the constellations thereof, performing their 
wondrous journey; whilst itself imperceptibly, de- 
scribes the eternal circle of day and night, seasons 
and years, through thy extended empire! 

It verges towards the east, and presents to the 
sun’s view, vast oceans, studded with innumerable 
islands, gulfs, bays, and continents without bounds; 
their kingdoms, empires, and inhabitants, who, in a 
thousand different modes and languages, worship 
the divinity unknown. 

And thou, bright queen of the universe! Thou 
waftest to heaven the incense of mankind, and wish- 
est them all manner of good. Thou dost solicit 
them thereto, by exciting a desire of the pleasures 
and benefits thou art perpetually preparing; anxious 
that the gilts thou so prodigally conferest, should 
be communicated to all. 


205 


Thou dost impress a sentiment of existence, by 
every organ of perception, opening thy immense 
riches to our view. Thou paintest in our minds a 
portrait of the universe, adorned with all that can 
engage and charm the sensitive organ. Thou ra- 
vishest our ears with sounds, fraught with the ten- 
derness of love; with the ecstasy of delight. 

Mother of the graces! of humanity and love! it is 
thou who formest our hearts, and the objects that 
enchant them. The various senses by which those 
objects are perceived, are the work of thy hand. If 
these should happen to give pain, thou calmest the 
present evil, by inspiring hopes of a happy futurity. 

Reason! assist thy friend and ally, nature! con- 
firm her presages in the virtuous breast; engrave 
her sacred laws on our souls. Laws so just, that 
the wisdom of eternal equity will never change 
them. Proclaim to man, his title to happiness, to 
recompense, in a future state of being, provided he 
has conferred more good on his fellow-creatures, 
than he has received from nature, or from them; for 
nothing less can render him a sharer in the future 
reward. 

Thou, who art enlightened! support the weak and 
instruct the ignorant, in their passage through life, 
by every means of humanity and justice: Thus shalt 
thou answer the end of creation; the felicity and 
perfection of all national beings. Point out the won- 
ders of the universe, and the disinterested benevo- 
lence of its Almighty Lord, in this solemn address: 

“ Creature of a da) ! who swellest with thy own 
littleness and the nothing out of which thou wert 
made! Behold the kind earth which supports and 
nourishes thee; the starry firmament that covers 
thee, and the sun that gives light. Contemplate his 
lustre; a lustre that was created for thee. — Consider 
what thou wert, and what is thy present existence, 
then judge what thou mayest be; — not by an in- 
s 


206 


crease of thy bulk, stature, wealth or knowledge, 
but by the improvement of thy virtue.” 

And may your conduct through the dream of 
life, on this terrestrial globe, at length be merito- 
rious and of wafting your immortal soul to the eternal 
mansions of happiness, where permanent floods of 
living waters run, for the benefit of the holy throng, 
without ceasing. May this be the happy case of all, 
is my^incere wish. 


FINIS. 






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